El Niño Storms Slam Drought-Parched California
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com/AP) — Persistent wet conditions could put some Los Angeles communities at risk of flash-flooding along with mud and debris flows, especially in wildfire burn areas, meteorologists said Tuesday.
According to the National Weather Service, a flash flood watch has been issued through Thursday morning as significant rainfall is expected.
The storms lined up over the Pacific started soaking California with light rain Monday but a series of stronger systems are expected to arrive starting today, forecasters said.
Residents of the Silverado Canyon burn area in Orange County and the Solimar burn area in Ventura County were told they may want to evacuate in advance of the storm, but have not been ordered to do so.
Lake Hughes Road, between Warm Springs and Newvale Drive, will remain closed until further notice, according to the Los Angeles County Public Works. Beginning at 6 a.m., Glendora Ridge Road, between Glendora Mountain and Mt. Baldy roads, will remain closed as well.
According to Knott's Berry Farm, the park will be closed today due to inclement weather.
Several boulders slid onto vehicles driving on Malibu Canyon Road, located near the tunnel about two miles north of the Pacific Coast Highway, City News Service reported.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti warned people to clear gutters and anything in their yard that might clog storm drains; assemble an emergency kit; and stockpile sandbags if their home is susceptible to flooding.
Garcetti held a news conference at 9:45 a.m. to discuss preparedness for the El Niño-related storms.
Councilmember Mike Bonin, LAPD Chief Charlie Beck, LAFD Chief Ralph Terrazas and Emergency Management Department General Manager James Featherstone were expected to be in attendance.
An effort also was underway to provide shelter for homeless people.
Between 2 and 3.5 inches of rain is predicted to fall across the coastal and valley areas of Southern California through Friday, with up to 5 inches falling in the mountains.
The brewing El Niño system — a warming pattern in the Pacific Ocean that alters weather worldwide — is expected to impact California and the rest of the nation in the coming weeks and months.
El Nino storms in the early 1980s and late 1990s brought about twice as much rain as normal, Jet Propulsion Laboratory climatologist Bill Patzert said. The weather also caused mudslides, flooding and high surf.
El Nino's effects on California's drought are difficult to predict, but Patzert said it should bring at least some relief.
Doug Carlson, spokesman for the California Department of Water Resources, pointed out that four years of drought have left California with a water deficit that is too large for one El Nino year to totally overcome.
The record drought in California has forced Gov. Jerry Brown to order cities to conserve water by 25 percent compared to the same period in 2013.
State officials said residents in November missed their 25 percent water conservation mandate for a second month running.
(TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
