California's deadly wildfires may be over in the coming days when weekend storms sweep over historically dry terrain, but the storms will bring the potential for a different problem: flash flooding.

Flood watches have been issued for the same Los Angeles area that has been devastated by fires that began burning this month, with no rain coming more than seven months after the hurricane struck, a record for parts of Southern California.

The 24-hour flood watch alert covers the still-active Palisade Fire, which has burned 23,448 acres and is 77 percent contained, and the Eaton Fire, which has burned 14,021 acres and is 95 percent contained. , starting Sunday at 4 p.m.

The National Weather Service said the possibility of mudslides triggered the watch, which indicated flooding conditions were favorable but imminent. Federal forecasters said there was a 10 to 20 percent chance of significant flooding and debris flow.

"Although disruptive debris flow is not the most likely outcome, there is still a lot of uncertainty surrounding this storm," the weather service office in Oxnard said Friday. "The threat is high enough to prepare for the worst-case scenario. "

September's burn scar in the Angeles National Forest above the San Gabriel Valley and the Hughes Fire in the forest northwest of Los Angeles started earlier this week and has burned 10,396 acres, covering Friday also held 56% under a scheduled flood watch.

Los Angeles County, as well as the cities of Los Angeles, Pasadena and Baldwin Park, offer sandbags to residents who want to prepare for the possibility of mud.

Rain is likely to begin and become heavier in Los Angeles County on Saturday afternoon when it "may be mild to locally heavy rain, small hail or graupel," according to a discussion of weather service forecasts.

Forecasters said the city of Los Angeles could get a quarter of an inch of rain, while an inch of rain was possible in San Diego. Sunday could be the rainiest day, they said.

A winter storm warning is expected for the Southern California mountains and their communities, including Wrightwood, Big Bear, Big Bear Lake, Crest, Running Springs and Lake Arrowhead, inspiring the San Gabriel and San Bernardino mountains. The 48-hour warning is due to begin at 4pm on Sunday.

Elevations as high as 6,000 feet could accumulate up to 18 inches of snow from Saturday afternoon into Monday afternoon, the weather service said.

The Weather Service office in Oxnard said the Life 5 Highway, which runs between the U.S. and the borders with Mexico and Canada, could see "dusty" snow along its vines in the Lebec area. Forecast discussion. The office said travel disruptions are possible.

Even urban Los Angeles and the mountains in San Diego County could see 14 inches and 8 inches of snowfall. The Boundary 2 Fire in San Diego County has burned 6,273 acres since Thursday and was 10% contained Friday night.

San Diego's weather service office said rainfall on Jan. 10 fell only after it began on Oct. 1, making it the driest winter since officials began recording weather data in 1860.

Forecasters say temperatures are expected to drop by 10 to 15 degrees over the weekend in Southern California.