California hurricane: Historic rainfall threatens flooding and landslides

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Rain from one of the The worst hurricane in the history of Southern California Relief was expected on Tuesday, but forecasters warned that flooding was still possible and wet ground increased the risk of potentially deadly landslides.

The slow-moving storm moved into the region on Monday, bringing record amounts of rain to parts of Los Angeles that could last through Wednesday, the National Weather Service said. There will be light to moderate rain with scattered showers and a few possible thunderstorms, but there is still a risk of brief, severe downpours in many places, bringing as much as half an inch to an inch (1.3 to 3 centimeters) of rain an hour. Is.

Authorities have warned people to be on high alert and much of Southern California is under a flood watch. swelling and fast flowing creeks and rivers “The risk of drowning has increased and prompt water rescue is required,” the weather service said.

Tornadoes swept across Northern California over the weekend, killing three people as they were crushed by falling trees, then spread south. This was the second storm that was provoked atmospheric river To attack the kingdom within a few days.

On Monday, rain inundated Los Angeles, sending mud and rocks down hills lined with million-dollar homes, while people living in homeless camps in many parts of the city struggled to safety.

Near the Hollywood Hills, floodwaters carried mud, rocks and household items downstream through Studio City, city officials said. Sixteen people were evacuated and several houses were red tagged.

“It feels like it’s a river that’s been here for years,” said Keki Mingus, whose neighbors’ homes were damaged. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Drake Livingston, who lives in the Beverly Crest neighborhood, was watching a movie around midnight when a friend alerted him to the flooding.

“We looked outside and there was about a foot and a half of water flowing and it was starting to seep through the doors,” said Livingston, whose car was found submerged in mud Monday morning.

About 7 inches (18 centimeters) of rain fell in Downtown Los Angeles by Monday night, about half the annual average of 14.25 inches (36 centimeters). The service said it was the third wettest two-day period since 1877.

Ariel Cohen, meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service bureau in Los Angeles, warned that despite the projected drop in rainfall, the danger is not over.

“The ground is extremely saturated, supersaturated,” he said at a news conference Monday afternoon. “It is not able to hold any additional water before it slips. “There is not going to be much rainfall to cause additional landslides, landslides, rockslides and other debris flows.”

In LA, evacuation orders remained in place for some residents of the Valley region vulnerable to the 2022 fires. Officials said the risk of mudflows and debris flows has increased because the area has been burned without bushes and trees that could contain it.

The Los Angeles Fire Department said 1,000 firefighters responded to more than 300 landslides and rescued motorists trapped in vehicles on flooded roads in addition to more than 100 reports of flooding.

The shelters added beds to the city’s homeless population of approximately 75,000 people.

Tony Saenz spent the night in a city park before seeking higher ground around dawn as floodwaters rose around his tent.

“Boy, did it rain last night,” he said, huddled in a tarpaulin-covered tent on the sidewalk outside a supermarket on Monday afternoon. He looked at the clouds in the sky amidst the rain and thought, “Is this so? I hope that’s it.”

Officials said crews rescued people from rapidly rising waters in various parts of Southern California, including 16 people and five cats in Los Angeles County alone.

Two homeless people were rescued Monday after spending the night on a small island in the Santa Ana River in San Bernardino, about an hour’s drive east of Los Angeles.

“They were cold and tired from being stranded all night on this little piece of dirt in the middle of the river,” said Captain Nathan Lopez of the San Bernardino County Fire Department. A dog and two cats were also rescued.

Officials also reported several leaks Monday, including the discharge of about 5 million gallons (18.9 million liters) of raw sewage in the Rancho Dominguez area around Compton. Most of the untreated sewage ran into the channel leading to the Pacific Ocean and the city closed a 7-mile (11 km) stretch of Long Beach to recreational swimming.