The National Weather Service issued a flood watch for the Sacramento area and a wide swath Northern California as a series of warm, powerful storms — driven by atmospheric rivers — threaten to bring “prolonged” rainfall, elevated river levels and potential mudslides through the Christmas holiday week.
The flood watch takes effect at 4 p.m. Saturday and continues through 4 p.m. Friday, Dec. 26. It marks the first significant flood watch of the 2025-26 water year, which began Oct. 1.
“A series of warm atmospheric rivers will bring moderate to heavy rain to the Valley, foothills, and mountains the week of Christmas,” the weather service said. “The prolonged period of rain will bring the risk of flooding to the Sacramento Valley, northern San Joaquin Valley, northern Sierra Nevada and adjacent foothills, as well as the Coastal Range.”…