Showers and Possible Thunderstorms Reach L.A. Tonight as a Week-Long 'Storm Train' Begins

A quarter inch to an inch of rain is expected by Saturday, with a chance of thunder Friday, big surf on the beaches Saturday and more storms lined up for Monday and next Wednesday.

By Herald Staff · Nov. 12, 2026, 8:30 AM ET

Illustration of a rain-slicked, palm-lined boulevard at blue hour leading toward the downtown Los Angeles skyline, with streetlights and taillights reflected on wet pavement and a dark storm cloud bank and a distant flash of lightning over the towers. — Showers reach Los Angeles after midnight tonight, with a slight chance of thunderstorms Friday and a second, wetter round Friday night into Saturday, forecasters say.

LOS ANGELES — The rain that forecasters have been promising all week is now just hours away. Showers are expected to reach the Los Angeles area after midnight tonight, and the National Weather Service in Oxnard said Thursday morning that a few thunderstorms could pop up over the coastal plain and coastal waters late tonight and Friday. It's the first of several storms lined up behind each other, with more rain likely Monday and again next Wednesday.

Thursday itself stays dry. The zone forecast for the inland coastal plain, which covers downtown, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City and Downey, calls for sunshine and highs in the lower 80s. Clouds build in this evening, and the chance of showers after midnight is 40%.

Two Rounds, and a Chance of Thunder

Forecasters said the storm will come in two parts. The first is an upper-level low that is sliding south and east into northern Baja California today and tonight. Because most of its energy will pass south and east of the region, the weather service expects light totals from this round, "generally on the order of 0.25 inches or less for most areas."

That low is also bringing cold air high in the atmosphere, which makes the air unstable. Forecasters said that creates "the potential for some thunderstorms" south of Point Conception, mainly over the coastal waters and the coastal plain, and that heavier showers or storms could produce locally higher totals. Downtown's forecast for Friday calls for showers likely in the morning with a slight chance of thunderstorms, then scattered showers in the afternoon. The chance of rain is 60%, with highs in the lower to mid 70s and southwest winds around 15 mph.

The second round is a cold front that should sweep through from late Friday afternoon into Saturday morning. The weather service said it will bring "a good chance of more widespread rainfall," with another quarter to three-quarters of an inch possible and more on favored mountain slopes. Rain is in the downtown forecast after midnight Friday, and the chance lingers at 40% Saturday morning before skies turn partly cloudy.

Altogether, the two waves should leave most areas with a quarter inch to an inch of rain. Forecasters said rainfall rates should mostly stay at a quarter inch an hour or less, with local bursts near half an inch an hour. Interior areas could also see gusty winds Friday and Friday night, possibly reaching low-end advisory levels.

The weather service has signaled this will be helpful rain rather than a dangerous one. "We're not expecting any issues for burn areas or anything like that — mostly what we would consider beneficial rain," meteorologist Mike Wofford told LAist. "It's definitely gonna feel a little bit closer to winter than we've had in the last week or so."

Bad Air Before the Rain

The rain should also help clear the air. The South Coast Air Quality Management District has extended an air quality alert for harmful levels of fine particle pollution through 11:59 p.m. Thursday. The alert covers Vernon, Maywood, Bell Gardens, Westmont, Hawthorne, Inglewood, downtown L.A., East L.A. and Huntington Park. People with heart or lung disease, older adults, pregnant people and children are urged to limit long or hard outdoor activity when levels reach the orange "unhealthy for sensitive groups" range.

Big Waves Saturday

At the beach, the main threat is surf, not rain. A Beach Hazards Statement remains in effect through Monday morning for Los Angeles County beaches, the Malibu coast and Ventura County beaches. Forecasters said waves will "significantly increase Friday night into the weekend," reaching 7 to 10 feet on exposed west-facing beaches and up to 12 feet in Ventura County. The swell, sent by a strong storm near the Aleutian Islands, should peak Saturday.

The weather service warned of significant beach erosion and shallow seawater flooding of low-lying beach walkways, parking lots and roads, especially near morning high tides, along with rip currents and sneaker waves. It told beachgoers to stay out of the water or near occupied lifeguard towers and to keep off rock jetties. Farther up the coast, a Coastal Flood Watch and High Surf Advisory are in effect for the Central Coast, where surf of 18 to 25 feet is possible on northwest-facing shores.

The Storms Keep Coming

Sunday looks like a break, with sun and highs in the mid 70s downtown. Then, forecasters said, "the 'storm train' is expected to continue." A system arriving Sunday night through Tuesday could bring a tenth to half an inch of rain, and the downtown forecast puts the chance of rain at 50% Monday and 60% Monday night. Another storm next Wednesday and Wednesday night could bring a quarter inch to an inch, though the weather service cautioned that those numbers "will likely change from day-to-day."

Snow levels should stay around 7,000 feet for most of the week but could drop to 5,000 to 6,000 feet with Monday night's storm, LAist reported. Highs are expected to stay mostly in the 60s next week, below the 80s and 90s of the past several days. Updated forecasts and alerts are posted at weather.gov/lox.

Original reporting by The Los Angeles Herald, drawing on the National Weather Service's Los Angeles/Oxnard forecast discussion, zone forecast and beach hazards statement, the South Coast AQMD and LAist, as linked above.