Storms forecast for fire-scarred Southern Calif.

LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE, CALIF. — Two storms appeared to be on course Friday to hit Southern California next week with potentially heavy rainfall that could unleash floods of mud and debris-laden water from wildfire burn areas into adjacent communities.

The National Weather Service said the exact tracks of the storms and rainfall amounts were still uncertain, but it was likely that rain would fall over the region on Monday and possibly through the week until Friday. There was a possibility showers could arrive as early as Sunday night, the NWS said.

A major area of concern is the string of Los Angeles suburbs below the south face of the steep San Gabriel Mountains, where the Station Fire burned away 250 square miles of forest vegetation during the summer and destroyed 89 of some 7,000 homes it threatened.

The U.S. Geological Survey has warned that storms could unleash huge flows of water laden with mud, rocks and other debris deep into the communities.

Authorities have installed concrete barriers and sandbags to protect homes, and cleared accumulated debris from flood-control catch basins. The defenses were given a small test last month when a brief, unexpected downpour sent mud coursing down slopes in La Canada Flintridge.

La Canada Flintridge posted the daily chances of rain through the next week on a "Potential Mudslide Events" section of the city's Web site, and neighboring Glendale announced the city is ready for potential flooding.

City spokesman Ritch Wells said in a statement that preparations that began after the fire were continuing and included installation of cameras so officials can monitor any debris flows.

The first precipitation is expected from a cold storm that originated over Canada and may also bring heavy snow to the mountains, forecasters said.

The second storm may arrive Wednesday and last through Friday as the jet stream tracks across Southern California, bringing moisture from the tropical west Pacific, the NWS said.

"This second storm could bring widespread heavy rainfall," the NWS said.

The private forecasting company AccuWeather.com said the first storm is likely to deliver a half-inch to 1 inch of rain in Southern California, while the second storm could drop amounts ranging from 1 1/2 inches to 4 inches. But AccuWeather warned that up to four times that much precipitation could fall on some west- and south-facing slopes of the mountains from the central coast down to Southern California.

"If these model projections are even close to being right, we are staring straight in the face of widespread flooding problems," AccuWeather said in a release.

Wildfires this year have also burned many other areas of Southern California, including Santa Barbara and Ventura counties to the northwest of Los Angeles, and in the inland region to the east. Many areas are also still denuded from fires in previous years.