By Wednesday night, Los Angeles County was already beginning to breathe after a relentless atmospheric river brought record rain and flooding.
Intense First Wave
The first surge of the atmospheric river struck Los Angeles County on Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025, delivering intense downpours that caused flooding and mudflows in burn-scar and low-lying areas.
Roadway and Flood Impacts
All lanes along the 5 Freeway at the Lankershim exit in Sun Valley were heavily flooded, prompting crews to shut them down and offer detours. Some lanes began to reopen around 5:20 p.m. Altadena roadways experienced mud and debris flows, though areas affected by the Palisades Fire largely avoided major damage. In Palmdale, a group of people were rescued after their car became trapped in floodwaters.
Rainfall Totals
The heaviest rain occurred during the morning hours. 24-hour totals from Tuesday to Wednesday were:
- Saugus: 4.18 in
- Filmore: 4.10 in
- Van Nuys: 3.87 in
- Burbank: 3.45 in
- Malibu: 3.05 in
- El Monte: 2.82 in
- San Dimas Dam: 2.45 in
- Santa Monica: 2.42 in
- Hawthorne: 2.04 in
- Lancaster: 2.22 in
- LAX: 1.90 in
- Palmdale: 1.89 in
- Long Beach: 1.58 in
Looking Ahead
The rain began to taper off in many parts of the county by the evening, but a second round of storm is expected on Thursday, Christmas Day.
Key Takeaways
- 5 Freeway lanes were flooded and temporarily closed.
- The morning hours saw the highest rainfall amounts.
- A new storm wave is anticipated on Christmas Day.
The event was captured in a video broadcast during NBC4 News at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, and was reported by Helen Jeong for NBC Universal, Inc.
