Even as firefighters continue efforts to get full containment of the massive Thomas brush fire, public safety officials are gearing up for possible flooding, and debris flows from the first big storm of the season.
Intense rainfall could be on the way for the Central and South Coasts early next week, not good news in the wake of fire stripping many mountain slopes near homes.
Meteorologist Mark Jackson, with the National Weather Service, says there could be one to two inches of rain, with mountains possibly getting up to up to four inches. The system is expected to arrive in Santa Barbara County Monday night, and move into Ventura County overnight, with the heaviest rainfall in the middle of the night.
There could be rainfall rates of a half inch to an inch an hour, and that potential for concentrated rain is causing the biggest concern, because that’s what is normally associated with flooding, and debris flows.
It's creating concern for Thomas Fire burn areas, as well as in the mountains and foothills of Santa Barbara County charred by last summer's Whittier Fire.
Public safety officials have a simple message for people who live in, and around burn areas: Be prepared, and take time now to assess the potential danger from nearby mountains. They say if you haven’t done it yet, now is the time to go online to your county’s website to get emergency alerts on your cell phone. In Santa Barbara County, it’s awareandprepare.org, and in Ventura County, it’s at readyventuracounty.org.
The Thomas Fire remains at 92% containment, and just under 282,000 acres burned Friday.
