Strongest storm of the week arriving as we speak

The strongest flood warnings from the National Weather Service are for the Orange County canyons. The morning update on the Los Angeles situation from Mayor Villaraigosa's office:

Weather:

The next round of storms are scheduled to arrive around 12pm today and remain until 6pm. Rainfall is expected to average approximately .5"-.75" per hour.

By Friday, a total rainfall is expected to reach 4-8 inches in Coastal and Valley areas, 8-16 inches in the Foothill areas, and up to 20 inches in the burn areas (South Facing Coastal Slopes). The cumulative affect of these storms will bring threats of significant flash flooding and debris flow in the burn areas, and the threat of urban and small stream flooding and rock slides in other areas.

The entire City of LA is currently under a flash flood watch. The most recently issued flash flood watch was for downtown LA.

Evacuations:

176 additional homes in the Foothill area have been given mandatory evacuation orders. They were notified by the County’s Notification System and LAPD gave door to door notification. The areas that have been affected are: Alpine Way, Zachaou Canyon, Haines Canyon, Riverwood, Rowley Canyon, Blue Gum Canyon, Thundering Hooves Ranch, Rancho Ybarra, and Blanchard Canyon. No return date has yet been determined for evacuated residents.

Information on evacuation orders can be obtained by calling 323-441-1187.

Plus: 1,700 DWP customers without power as of 10:30 a.m.