At Least 14 Dead as California Reels From “Endless” Storm
Relentless storms were ravaging California again Tuesday, the latest bout of extreme weather that has left 14 people dead and prompted evacuation of a star-studded town home to Britain’s Prince Harry and wife Meghan Markle.
Fierce storms caused flash flooding, closed key highways, toppled trees and swept away drivers and passengers — reportedly including a five-year-old-boy who remains missing in central California — and authorities were bracing for more rain and snow to batter America’s most populous state.
According to Poweroutage.us, more than 230,000 California businesses and homes were without power on Tuesday morning.
On Wednesday, a new storm will pound California with up to seven inches (18 cm) of rain in northern California. “several more feet of snow” The National Weather Service issued a Tuesday forecast for the Sierra Nevada mountains.
The NWS describes an “endless onslaught of atmospheric river events” It is the most powerful storm system in history since 2005.
The town of Montecito, a favorite of American entertainment royalty such as Oprah Winfrey and Jennifer Aniston, was expected to get up to eight inches of rain in 24 hours — threatening dangerous mudslides on hills already sodden by weeks of downpours.
According to emergency authorities, anyone living in the vicinity of Los Angeles should evacuate.
“LEAVE NOW! This is a rapidly evolving situation. Please pay close attention to emergency alerts,” a fire department website said.
A reporter from AFP saw police roadblocks placed to stop people getting into the town.
The town’s multi-million dollar properties, which are situated in stunning California countryside, are particularly vulnerable to mudslides due to its location at the base of a mountain range, which was ravaged five years ago by fire.
In 2017 and 2018, hundreds of kilometers (square miles) of land were burned, removing the vegetation that normally holds the soil in place.
23 people died in devastating January 2018 mudslides at Montecito.
“Over the last 30 days, Montecito has received 12-20+ inches of rain across the community, exceeding our yearly average of 17 inches,” Montecito Fire stated on Twitter.
“This cumulative, saturating rain puts the community at greater risk of flooding and debris flow.”
It was not clear how many of the town’s residents, who also include Ellen DeGeneres, Gwyneth Paltrow, Katy Perry and Rob Lowe, had heeded the call to flee.
Boy taken away by his mother
The Montecito evacuation order came as California was being lashed by the latest in a parade of storms that have already killed 14 people — a toll which Governor Gavin Newsom’s office said is already “more lives than wildfires in the past two years combined.”
According to Fox News, authorities in San Luis Obispo County stopped searching for a five year-old boy after the rushing waters proved too dangerous for divers.
The child who ran with his mother out of their car after it was submerged by floodwaters, has not yet been declared dead. The mother was rescued.
The Ventura County fire department, located northwest of Los Angeles said that it saved 18 people Monday from an isolated island in the Ventura River.
Swathes of the Golden State were under flood warnings as it struggled to cope with yet more rain on top of near-record downpours in recent weeks — with even more forecast over the coming days.
“Two major episodes of heavy rain and heavy mountain snow are expected to impact California in quick succession during the next couple of days in association with two of the more energetic and moisture-laden parade of cyclones that are aiming directly” The NWS stated that the NWS was responsible for the state.
Last week Newsom declared an emergency in California and the White House authorized the use of federal funds for California emergency operations on Monday.
“We expect to see the worst of it still ahead of us,” Newsom told reporters.
Drought: Downpours
California’s winters are not known for their heavy rainfall, but these downpours are a test of the state.
They arrive as the western US is in the midst of a prolonged drought, with significant increases in wildfire intensity and frequency.
Scientists believe that human-caused climate changes, caused by uncontrolled burning of fossil fuels has accelerated these extreme weather swings.
Storms last week around San Francisco caused flooding, on the heels of a ferocious New Year’s Eve downpour which left the ground sodden and waterlogged.
However, even recent heavy rains cannot completely reverse the drought.
Scientists believe that it will take several years of above-average rainfall to restore healthy levels to reservoirs.
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