SoCal firefighters preparing for intense wildfires despite rain

Record rainfall from this week's 'atmospheric river' event could mean the end of fire season for much of northern California, experts say, but it's a different story here in the southland.

An historic storm dumped all-time record amounts of rain in the Golden State, welcomed with open arms in some areas ravaged in the last year by several of the state's largest wildfires. It came as much of the state remains in an exceptional drought.

"It feels much better now that everything is wet. We won't be so afraid anymore for some time," said a northern California homeowner.

It rained so much up north this week that some fire experts say wildfire danger for the season there could be coming to an end. The nearly 1 million acre Dixie Fire reached 100 percent containment as a result of the storm.

But rainfall measurements from that system here in SoCal, while still impressive in some mountain communities, didn't even come close. 

"A lot of the rain that we've got here in southern California, a lot of that moisture is already dried up in certain areas," said Capt. Richard Cordova with Cal Fire. "We could be off to the races within a matter of days."

Fire officials locally are still bracing for an intense fire season ahead, as this week, Santa Ana winds start to move in.

"When it comes to Santa Ana winds, they bring in warmer, drier air," said meteorologist Kelley Moody. "That is really a key ingredient when it comes to the spread of potential fire weather."

"The winds really drive these fires," Cordova said. "It could be cool outside. But when you get 80+ mph winds on some of these fires, there's really nothing really stopping these fires."