New storm expected to bring another round of rain and snow to Southern California through Sunday afternoon

A new storm is expected to hit Southern California early Sunday, bringing scattered showers across the region and more snow in mountain passes.

Snow was beginning to stick along the Interstate 5 corridor in the Tejon Pass on Saturday, the National Weather Service said. Snow levels were predicted to drop to 3,500-to-4,000 feet.

Forecasters said snow levels could drop to 2,500 feet on Sunday when a new storm moves through the region. Scattered showers are expected to linger through the afternoon.

Officials have warned of possible closures of mountain passes due to snow.

Some Santa Barbara County mountain peaks could see up to 6 inches of snow, the weather service said.

A series of storms has made for a rare wet winter in California, with record rains and massive snowfall in the mountains that helped double the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada.

Below-normal temperatures are expected through next week throughout Southern California. Another storm is predicted to hit the region on Wednesday and continue through Thursday, forecasters said.

Heavy snowfall this week at Yosemite National Park toppled trees, knocked out power and damaged campgrounds, and some roads and facilities including the ski area remained closed Friday, officials said.

No one was injured during the storm, which from Monday through Wednesday dumped 18 to 24 inches of snow on Yosemite Valley and several feet in the high country.

The park is open, but all visitor services at Half Dome Village remained closed Friday as the damage was assessed and repairs begun.

About 50 guest cabins at Half Dome Village were damaged or destroyed, as well as 50 to 70 housing units for concession employees, National Park Service officials said. Alternative housing was being arranged for about 150 workers.

The National Weather Service reported that between Friday and Saturday mornings, three inches of snow fell at Mountain High, up to four inches on Pine Mountain, and two inches in Wrightwood.

About one-fifth to one-third of an inch of rain was expected Sunday in the state’s southwestern region and along the coast, the weather service said.

According to Associated Press reports, more than 100 staff and visitors at the Montecito Sequoia Lodge in the Sequoia National Forest in the Sierra Nevada were snowed-in from Sunday to Thursday last week before being freed.