A “bomb cyclonic” swept through California on Wednesday, bringing strong winds and torrential rains that could cause flooding in several areas where the ground is already saturated with water from other recent storms.
Its first effects were felt Wednesday afternoon: More than 60,000 homes suffered power outages, according to the PowerOutage site, while more than 80 flights to or from the San Francisco airport were canceled, according to the Flightaware site. Several roads have been cut off due to flooding, falling trees or landslides.
According to the US Weather Service (NWS), winds likely to reach 110 km/h were expected for Wednesday. Very heavy rains are also expected, with up to 10 centimeters of precipitation in the San Francisco Bay and 1.2 meters of snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The deluge should continue this Thursday.
“Avoid going on the road”
The region must prepare for “major flooding, submerged roads, mudslides, downed trees, major power outages, immediate disruption of commerce, and worst, likely loss of life,” according to the NWS.
California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency Wednesday morning to facilitate emergency response and expedite law enforcement reaction in the event of an incident. San Francisco has established an emergency operations center.
“If you don’t have an obligation to be outdoors in San Francisco, avoid going out on the road,” said Rachel Gordon, an official with the city’s public works department.
“We cross our fingers that we don’t have more damage”
Bars and restaurants remained closed on Wednesday and some residents were asked to work from home. City firefighters reported several downed trees Wednesday morning and some minor flooding before the heart of the storm hit. Thousands of sandbags have been distributed to the inhabitants of areas at risk of flooding.
“We are very concerned,” Deepak Srivastava, a San Francisco resident, told CBS. “I spent the day stacking sandbags in front of all the garage entrances, and we’re crossing our fingers that we don’t get more damage.”
“This storm alone could cause localized flooding and mudslides,” said meteorologist Matt Solum. “But with the recent wet conditions…any additional rain will run down rather than absorb into the ground.”
Into a new storm this weekend
The rain expected for Wednesday is coming from an “atmospheric river,” a narrow, river-like band in the atmosphere that carries large amounts of moisture from the tropics.
Far from being exceptional in winter, this current phenomenon is accompanied by a “cyclone bomb”, a system capable of causing the pressure to drop suddenly, thus generating very violent winds. According to forecasters, the series of storms currently battering California is not going to stop.
“We expect another one over the weekend,” announces Matt Solum. “And then potentially several storms for the next week. And possibly the following week as well.”
Source: BFM TV
