Drone video of flooded Felton in Santa Cruz County
At least 17 people have been killed and a five-year-old boy remains missing as a series of extreme storms continue to batter California.
More lives have now been lost in the storms – which began hammering the state last week – than were caused by two years of wildfires.
Some 22 million people across California and parts of Oregon remain under a flood advisory as the atmospheric river looks set to keep dumping heavy precipitation across the region.
The extreme weather saw the celebrity enclave of Montecito placed under an evacuation order and on Tuesday the whole of San Francisco was warned of flash flooding.
The search resumed on Tuesday for five-year-old Kyle Doan who was swept away when his mother’s truck got stuck in a creek near Paso Robles in central California. Low visibility and raging waters had forced emergency responders to postpone their efforts.
More severe weather is forecast throughout the week bringing the threat of more flash flooding, rising rivers, and mudslides on already saturated soils.
Palm Springs residents rescued as California’s desert city is hit by flash floods
The Palm Springs Fire Department carried out the swift water rescue after flooding in a desert wash in the city. A wash is an area in the desert where water once flowed or that floods during heavy rain or flash flooding.
Graeme Massie11 January 2023 19:41
Mammoth Mountain continues to dig out from storm
The famed California ski resort in the Sierra Nevada says it got up to 7.5ft of snow in the recent storms, with more expected later this week.
“WHAT.A.STORM. We thought this photo was fitting for the final Dump Alert of this Mammoth mega-storm which dropped 6 to 7.5 FEET of snow in the last few days,” the resort’s Instagram account stated.
Graeme Massie11 January 2023 19:19
Watch: Trapped driver rescued from floodwater in California desert city of Palm Springs
Trapped motorist rescued from floodwater in California desert city of Palm Springs
Louise Boyle11 January 2023 18:56
Southern California surveys its damage as north braces for more downpours
Southern California was taking stock of the damage from heavy rainfall and high winds on Wednesday even as a new atmospheric river made its way onshore.
Today’s downpours were expected to only impact northern areas of the state, giving the south a break – at least until the weekend, the National Weather Service reported.
Abandoned cars are left in a flooded street in Santa Barbara earlier this week
(REUTERS)
Louise Boyle11 January 2023 18:27
Fatigue setting in at the National Weather Service
Louise Boyle11 January 2023 18:14
Spike in lightning strikes
The parade of atmospheric rivers has caused an abnormal number of lightning strikes in California in recent weeks.
The state typically has one of the lowest annual tallies of lightning strikes in the nation.
National Weather Service meteorologist Robert Baruffaldi told The New York Times that this was because of the lack of humidity in California that means “it’s harder to get the persistent strikes that other parts of the nation see”.
On Tuesday, the storm system parked over the San Francisco Bay area led to five to ten lightning strikes every five minutes, the local CBS channel reported.
Lightning strikes are seen above buildings in San Fransisco, California on 5th January
(Lapine via REUTERS)
Louise Boyle11 January 2023 17:59
Snow for days
Mammoth Mountain ski area was closed on Tuesday because it received too much snowfall, according to reports.
“An incredible 420cm [165 inches] has fallen since Christmas with over 4ft or 120cm in just in the last day alone,” Global News Canada’s Chief Meteorologist Anthony Farnell tweeted. He shared an image of a ski-lift at the resort under a heavy white blanket of fresh powder.
The resort’s official site reported that the mountain will have a staggered reopening on Wednesday. “Expect delays in all lift openings due to extensive avalanche mitigation work,” an alert stated.
Louise Boyle11 January 2023 17:36
Newsom links ‘weather whiplash’ to climate crisis
Governor Gavin Newsom hinted at a link between California’s extreme weather and the climate crisis during a visit to Santa Cruz county on Tuesday.
The area has been one of the most heavily impacted from the atmospheric river deluging the state.
“The dries are getting a lot drier the last three years, and the wets are getting a lot wetter. This weather whiplash — is that the new reality?” he said, according to NBC News.
California has been in a state of “megadrought” for the past two decades, intensified by the impacts of global heating. The climate crisis is responsible for about 42 per cent of the soil moisture deficit since 2000, according to a UCLA research paper last year. It also noted that it could take several years of high precipitation to overcome the mega-drought.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom listens during a news conference about storm damage on Jan. 10 in Capitola
(AP)
Louise Boyle11 January 2023 17:12
Tens of thousands remain without power
Tens of thousands of customers remain without power across California as severe storms continued to batter the state.
Some 57,835 homes and businesses were in blackout on Wednesday morning, according to utility tracker poweroutage.us
The most outages are located in Mendocino county, north of San Francisco, along with Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties which includes the city of San Jose and Silicon Valley.
Power outages across California on Wednesday, January 11
(poweroutage.us)
Louise Boyle11 January 2023 16:47
California transport officials warns people against taking to the roads
California transport officials were warning people against taking to the roads with more severe weather on the way.
Districts were “strongly advising” the public to avoid travel this week if possible, reported the California Department of Transportation, known as “Caltrans”.
“These storm systems have affected the majority of CA in some shape or form,” the department tweeted, and advised drivers to consult state travel alerts before heading out.
Louise Boyle11 January 2023 16:32