Atmospheric river comes to SoCal
The National Weather Service in Los Angeles issued a stern warning on Sunday afternoon, saying that the incoming storm is “dangerous” and comes “with major risks to life and property,” including “substantial flooding”.
“Residents should heed any evacuation orders. Stay off the roads, especially the freeways, this afternoon through at least Monday morning,” they said.
The first-ever hurricane-force wind warning was issued in northern California in the early hours of Sunday, with wind gusts of almost 90mph reported even before the full force of the storm was set to hit the state.
California was preparing for weeks worth of rainfall over the coming few days, raising the threat of dangerous flooding and mudslides. Los Angeles could see 15 inches of rainfall through Wednesday, forecasters said.
More than 242,000 customers in the state were without power just before 5pm on Sunday. More than a foot of snow in 24 hours has already been observed northwest of Lake Tahoe.
Wind gusts of 138mph recorded in California
Heavy rains and winds are battering California tonight with gusts of over 100mph recorded in several regions.
The Ward Mountain region has recorded 138mph of wind gusts, according to Jesse Ferrell, meteorologist at AccuWeather. While Upper Bull has seen 120 mph winds.
Stuti Mishra5 February 2024 11:30
Map shows peak wind gusts between Saturday and Sunday reaching as high as 75mph
Gustaf Kilander5 February 2024 11:00
In Photos: Heavy rains and winds topple trees in California
Stuti Mishra5 February 2024 10:30
‘This storm is cranking off the coast and behaving largely as expected’
“There’s lots of folks saying, ‘why hasn’t the rain been heavier at my house? Why hasn’t the wind been stronger?’ In a lot of cases, that’s just because it hasn’t arrived yet at specific locations,” he added.
“Just to reiterate, a lot of folks are saying ‘oh it’s sunny and 70 degrees, partly cloudy in Southern California. This storm was a bust’. No, it’s still just 500 miles to your west,” Dr Swain said.
“It is absolutely coming. If anything, it looks a little bit wetter even than it did yesterday. And those were already some pretty extreme totals,” he added.
Gustaf Kilander5 February 2024 10:00
Large amounts of rain and snowfall until at least the middle of next week
The storm is expected to bring large amounts of rain and snowfall until at least the middle of next week.
She noted that the size of the storm may mean that five states in the west may feel its impact, but added that California is “expected to bear the brunt of the wind, rain and snow”.
Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski noted that “Public awareness and storm readiness are strongly encouraged as life-threatening conditions may evolve in some communities”.
Population centres that were expected to be affected included San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Las Vegas.
“The San Bernardino Mountains outside of Los Angeles are projected to be a hot spot in terms of rainfall totals,” meteorologist Adam Douty said.
Gustaf Kilander5 February 2024 09:00
First ever Hurricane Force Wind Warning since recordkeeping began
The first ever Hurricane Force Wind Warning since recordkeeping began was issued by the National Weather Service (NWS) for the Bay Area in California in the early hours of Sunday.
The agency warned of wind gusts of up to 90mph in the coastal water off…
This article was originally published by a www.independent.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .