Weather

Flood watch for New Year’s, rainy first week of 2026

By Evan Vega

today at 3:28 pm

Published December 30, 2025 3:08 pm

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. - More rain returns Wednesday morning and peaks overnight between New Year's Eve and Day with thunderstorm chances and gusty winds.

Flood watches are in effect Wednesday night through Thursday night in southern Santa Barbara County and Ventura County.

Showers linger early Friday bringing rainfall forecasts between 1 and 3 inches near the coast, 2 to 6 inches inland from storm number 1 that is moving in from the south.

Our second storm arrives from the northwest on Friday night with potential for multiple pulses of rain to follow through next Tuesday, January 9th.

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Evan Vega

Evan Vega is the First Alert Forecaster for News Channel 3-12. To learn more about Evan, click here.

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