Insane feet of snow, heavy rain expected to slam the West after weeks of drought
After weeks of drought conditions, the West will experience significant mountain snow and rain in the lowlands. A large dip in the jet stream is expected to park itself over the West, which will open the door to much-welcomed active weather. Stay with FOX Weather for the latest:
Many rounds of mountain snow and heavy rain are brewing for the West, providing more relief to the current drought conditions that is plaguing multiple states with the worst snow drought in decades.
This is seen in the Upper Colorado Basin, which is facing an all-time record low amount of snow for this time of year.
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In Salt Lake City, UT, it has been 330 days since the city has seen 1 inch of snow, while in Grand Junction, CO, it has been 442 days.
In an aerial view, patchy snow remains on a golf course, which is normally used for cross-country skiing in the winter, on February 9, 2026 in Park City, Utah.
(Mario Tama/Getty Images / Getty Images)
It is expected that a large dip in the jet stream will stall over the West starting Sunday, allowing for an active weather pattern to kick in.
This opens the door for multiple storms to bring in much-welcome snow to the mountains and rain to the lowlands.
The system will begin in California as a strong area of low pressure will slam the region. At the same time, the system will fuel multiple subsequent storms that will funnel in more heavy rain.
(FOX Weather)
The FOX Forecast Center predicts rounds of snow through the end of next week, with some areas in the mountains expected to see extreme totals of feet of snow in the double-digits.
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This will provide critical relief to the snow-starved regions across the Sierra, Rockies, Colorado Basins and Wasatch ranges.
FOX Weather
In the lower elevations, such as Southern California, heavy rain is expected starting early in the week.
Los Angeles, CA and San Diego, CA could see up to 5 inches of rain, potentially causing flash flooding. This is especially likely near burn scars from last year’s devastating wildfires.
FILE- SANTA MONICA, CA – MARCH 12, 2025 – – Workers walk along Pacific Coast Highway, at Estrada Dr.., minutes before the highway was shutdown in Santa Monica on March 12, 2025. Caltrans closed a segment of Pacific Coast Highway to residents and businesses in burn scar areas at noon Wednesday due to safety concerns from the incoming storm. Only emergency vehicles and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers debris-hauling contractors will be allowed through the closure. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
(Getty Images)
As for right now, there is only a ¼ flash flood threat in place.
Even after this storm passes, the NOAA Climate Prediction Center predicts that much of the West will continue to see an above-average amount of precipitation through the end of February.
Downtown Los Angeles was wet again on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026 as another storm passed through the Southland.
((Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) / Getty Images)
Stay with FOX Weather to get the latest on the rain and snow in the West.
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