The National Weather Service warned that rain and flooding would intensify throughout the evening until around 10 p.m., bringing the risk of major flooding, debris flows and damaging winds.

A downpour in Los Angeles, just weeks after the devastating wildfires, prompted a flash flood warning due to mud and debris, officials said.

A swift debris flow swept a Los Angeles Fire Department vehicle off the Pacific Coast Highway and into the ocean as heavy rain fell across Southern California on Thursday, creating deluges of water and mud on roads at the bottom of hillsides left barren by recent wildfires.

Officials in Los Angeles issued evacuation warnings ahead of a potent storm that could cause life-threatening flooding and debris flow in areas charred by the deadly wildfires that broke out across Southern California last month.