California faces rain and flooding
Atmospheric river triggers wind warning
SAN FRANCISCO − Californians were getting thrashed Sunday by a fierce winter storm fueled by a raging atmospheric river that brought intense downpours, treacherous flooding and hurricane-force winds − even in major urban areas.
Up to 37 million people, about 94% of the state’s population, were at risk for life-threatening floods from the storm, Accuweather meteorologists warned. The atmospheric river − like a river in the sky − is the second to pound the state in recent days, but forecasters said this storm would be the season’s most potent, particularly in Southern California.
The National Weather Service issued a rare hurricane-force wind warning for the Central Coast: Wind gusts up to 92 mph were possible from the Monterey Peninsula to the northern section of San Luis Obispo County.
“All systems are go for one of the most dramatic weather days in recent memory,” the National Weather Service said Sunday.
Heavy rain was expected from the San Francisco Bay Area and the Central Coast through Southern California on Sunday into Monday, the NOAA Weather Prediction Center said. Rainfall of 2-5 inches and up to 6-10 inches in some spots was likely, the prediction center said. “This will result in considerable flash, urban and small stream flooding with debris flows and mudslides,” the prediction center said.
The National Weather Service in Los Angeles warned Sunday that heavy rain would be moving into the area: 3-6 inches was expected for the coasts and valleys and up to 6-12 inches in the mountains.
“Due to the numerous mountains and hills, even just a few inches of rain can cause significant flooding,” AccuWeather Senior Director of Forecasting Operations Dan DePodwin said. “The greatest risk ... is expected across the canyons and hills of Southern California, especially in Ventura, Santa Barbara and Los Angeles counties.”
Evacuation warnings and orders were in effect for Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, Ventura and Monterey counties. Classes were canceled Monday for schools across Santa Barbara County.
“This storm is predicted to be one of the largest and most significant in our county’s history and our goal is to get through it without any fatalities or any serious injuries,” Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown said Saturday.
Three children ‘in the eye of the storm’ 400-plus miles away
Doug and Pam Barry were among more than 100,000 Californians without power, as an outage hit their neighborhood in San Francisco on Sunday.
That was far from their biggest concern, though. Their two sons are attending college in Los Angeles and San Diego,
respectively, and their daughter Jessica was visiting the youngest son in San Diego when the storm hit. Now she hopes her plans to return home Sunday to Scottsdale, Arizona, aren’t disrupted.
“We have all three children in the eye of the storm in Southern California,” Doug Barry said. “We texted them yesterday to be careful with the approaching storm. We will get a good storm, but they will have it worse. Rarely do we share the same weather concerns with our children in California who are 400plus miles away.”
Heavy snow, powerful winds could lead to whiteout conditions
Heavy, wet snow was expected to spread across the Sierra Nevada on Sunday through Tuesday morning, with snowfall of 2-3 inches per hour, the prediction center said. Wind gusts of up to 60 mph could lead to whiteout conditions in the Southern California mountains, forecasters said.
Onshore winds will pummel the northern, central and southern coasts through Monday, forecasters said, leading to damaging surf. Thunderstorms, waterspouts and tornadoes with hail are possible, weather.com said.
The first storm in the “Pineapple Express” soaked the state with 1-6 inches of rain Wednesday and Thursday. The new storm is laden with even more moisture, forecasters said, setting up dangerous and deadly conditions in already-saturated regions.