Second Atmospheric River in Days Blows Into California, Knocking Out Power and Flooding Roads.
SAN DIEGO. The tail end of a powerful atmospheric river storm that knocked out power to nearly 400,000 California homes and businesses was deluging the state Monday with more heavy rain, mudslides, flooding and several feet of snow in the mountains.
The brunt of the storm’s fury Monday centered on the Los Angeles area, where 1.4 million people were under a flash flood warning – including the Hollywood Hills and Beverly Hills. A local state of emergency was issued for the city of Los Angeles by Mayor Karen Bass on Monday afternoon.
Across Southern California, the heavy winds that blasted the region Sunday were diminishing, but the National Weather Service warned that an unstable weather pattern could generate waterspouts or small tornadoes.
Flash flooding “is a much greater threat than any weak tornado that the storm may spawn,” the weather service said, and dangerous flooding was likely across much of the region from the atmospheric river − the equivalent of a river in the sky that is responsible for extreme rain and snow in the West.
Additional rainfall totals of 5-8 inches were forecast in some areas, which would bring 48-hour totals as high as 14 inches for some locations, the weather service said. A state of emergency was declared in eight Southern California counties.
“Life-threatening conditions may evolve extremely fast in some communities,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski warned.
In San Diego, Mayor Todd Gloria issued an evacuation warning for low-lying, flood-prone areas that were battered by heavy rains last week and flooded out two weeks ago. Some areas outside the city saw up to 7 inches of rain in the last two days.
“I understand the weariness that must come from these repeated warnings,” Gloria said. “I recognize that fatigue may be settling in. But I can assure you this decision to issue this warning is not taken lightly. I ask that everyone remain prepared and vigilant.”
debris flow caused significant damage to about five homes in Beverly Hills on Monday, the Los Angeles Fire Department said. Although no one was trapped, about 10 people have been displaced, the LAFD said.
The Los Angeles Fire Department reported that 1,000 firefighters were responding to 49 mudslides and debris flows, 130 reports of flooding, half a dozen structure fires and other rescues of motorists stranded in vehicles.
After battering California on Monday, the storm’s moisture will help fuel heavy snow across the West, and heavy rain in the normally arid Desert Southwest over the next few days, forecasters said. “Rainfall totals generally between 1-3 inches may lead to some scattered instances of flash flooding,” the National Weather Service said.