SoCal burn areas prepare for flooding as new storm approaches

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Southern California communities where hillsides were stripped bare by recent wildfires are preparing for possible flooding as a new storm looms this week.

Rain is supposed to hit much of the region starting overnight Tuesday, getting heavy in time for the Wednesday morning commute. It's expected to fall heaviest to the south and east of Los Angeles, hitting communities from Oceanside to Temecula to Riverside and out to Palm Springs.

A flash flood watch is in effect for many of those communities from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday.

Communities throughout the region from Ventura County to the Inland Empire were hit hard by wildfires in recent months.

The Getty Fire, for example, left hillsides overlooking the 405 Freeway and Sepulveda Boulevard stripped bare of vegetation.

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The Getty Fire burned about 745 acres, and was determined to have been sparked when high winds carried a tree branch from outside of a brush clearance zone into a city power line.

RELATED: Dashcam video shows electrical arc, explosion that started Getty Fire

Officials have put K-rails along the roadway to prevent mud flows from impeding onto Sepulveda Boulevard. They have extra crews and equipment in position and ready to be deployed.

"Our biggest concern is what the hillsides may do that no one has seen coming," said Chi Ming Gong with Los Angeles city Public Works. "Our concern is to make sure we have equipment in nearby areas that we pre-deploy with our best guesstimate on where we think possible mudslides may happen."