It's been a strange year.

We started with news that 2014 was the hottest year on record in California. We had a crazy stretch of summer weather in winter. Last month was the warmest March recorded in downtown L.A. And, now that spring is here, winter's going to come back for several hours this week.

Actually, the National Weather Service calls this “late-season rain and snow” because the wet months are still technically upon us. You wouldn't know it, right?

Well, we've got a cold, low-pressure system coming down from the Gulf of Alaska, the NWS says. And it's got water for us.

It's expected to bring as much as six hours of steady rain to Greater Los Angeles on Tuesday. We hope noir filmmakers have their crews ready to shoot.

The storm should strike in the afternoon and leave by late night, forecasters say.

We could get a healthy half-inch of rain and an inch in mountains and foothills, according to the service. 

Credit: NWS

Credit: NWS

And, to the undoubted dismay of those local resorts that closed early for the season, there will be snow. Forecasters say we can expect two to four inches and possibly even six in areas above 5,500 feet.

Lighter “dusting” could strike at 4,500 feet and above, they say.

Winds up to 40 miles per hour could happen; gusts could reach 50 miles per hour in the mountains, according to the NWS.

While this system is not likely to snow in the 5 freeway's Grapevine into Kern County, forecasters said, we should expect “ponding of water on low-lying streets,” “oil-slicked roads,” and “the threat of debris flows” in brushfire-affected areas of Southern California.

Stay safe.

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