When the Christmas rain comes depends on where you live

Commuters on Christmas morning should have no problem weather-wise traveling to loved ones’ homes – but the drive back could be a bit challenging.

On Tuesday, meteorologists said they expected heavy rainfall to hit the coasts and valleys in Los Angeles County by Christmas afternoon, and later into the night in Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

“There may be some scattered showers in the morning, however they would be very light,” , said Tom Fisher, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service, about L.A. County. “That picks up in the afternoon with the heaviest rain late overnight and into Thursday morning.”

The forecast indicates showers could be closer to the coast, Fisher said. Coastal and valley areas in Los Angeles County could see 0.75 to 1.75 inches of rain. South-facing foothills might get as much as three inches.

Those in Orange County and the Inland Empire shouldn’t be as impacted by rain on Christmas Day.

“Traveling (Christmas Day) shouldn’t be too bad,” said Adam Roser, another National Weather Service meteorologist. “The next big storm really starts to come into the area around midnight Thursday.”

In Orange County and the Inland Empire, the storm will travel west to east late Christmas night and should dissipate by Thursday afternoon, Roser said.

Most of those two regions will see at least an inch of rainwater, with some areas possibly getting two, Roser said, and that  rain might be preceded  by gusty winds.

In Southern California, Snowfall could reach as low as 4,000 feet of elevation, with an estimated one to two feet predicted for above 5,000 feet of elevation.