In Santa Barbara, people living in at-risk areas were told to leave by 3 p.m. Wednesday. The National Weather Service in Los Angeles said on X around 5 p.m. local time that the storm was "rapidly intensifying" over Los Angeles County.

For the second time this year, Southern Californians are evacuating their homes as heavy rain threatens new destruction in places still recovering from last month’s devastating wildfires.

A powerful storm fueled by an atmospheric river is drenching California, triggering evacuation orders and flood warnings.