The weather does not let up in California, where another atmospheric river storm descended with heavy rains and a high risk of flooding during the weekend, the National Weather Service (NWS) warned this Friday.
The storm has already claimed one life in Oakland.
This is a worker who died this Friday when a part of the roof collapsed due to the rains in a coffee distribution warehouse, according to the EFE news agency.
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It is feared that the heavy rains will melt some of the thick layers of snow, creating rivulets, and in some cases the rain can make the snow even heavier, increasing the likelihood that already weakened roofs will collapse, the agency reported. agency.
President Joe Biden approved this Friday the emergency declaration requested by California Governor Gavin Newsom, which authorizes support for the state from the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA, for its acronym in Spanish). in English).
There are at least two recent deaths from the effects of bad weather in the Sunshine State, Nancy Ward, director of the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services, told the Los Angeles Times.
Why are you concerned about rain in snow-saturated areas of California?
March 10, 202301:19
Ward told the Los Angeles media this Friday that the weather phenomenon already leaves "15 shelters open in nine counties, more than 9,400 people under evacuation orders, approximately 54,000 more people without power and, unfortunately, two deaths confirmed so far by the office of the forensic and storm-related," Ward said Friday.
On Thursday, Governor Newsom declared a state of emergency in 21 counties to bolster preventative work over the weekend.
The amount of snow accumulated by the series of storms that have impacted the state in recent weeks and the arrival of new heavy rains are a potentially deadly combination, which could generate flooding, avalanches and strong currents of water in low-lying areas.
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The Meteorological Prediction Center expected between 4 and 9 inches of rain this Friday for the Californian mountainous area and the Pacific coast, especially south of Monterey.
"On top of areas with saturated soil and deep snowpack will cause severe and widespread flooding impacts, particularly in high-risk areas," the report said.
Photos from the California Department of Transportation show the massive amount of snow that fell Thursday night on Highway 50 during an avalanche control operation in El Dorado County, northeast of Sacramento.
In the south of the state, authorities have focused their attention on San Bernardino County, where hundreds of mountain residents were trapped for several days after a snowstorm that left records of more than 100 inches (2.5 meters), reported the EFE agency.
As of Thursday, 13 deaths that could be related to the blizzard had been recorded, San Bernardino authorities said.
Only one of the deaths has been confirmed to be caused by the storm, the other twelve are under investigation, according to the agency report.
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According to Governor Newsom, weather forecasts suggest that the storms will continue until mid-March, hence the declaration of emergency in about twenty counties.
"California is deploying every tool we have to protect communities from the relentless and deadly storms that batter our state," Newsom said in a statement.
"In these dangerous and challenging conditions, it is crucial that Californians remain vigilant and follow all instructions from local emergency services," he said.
A pedestrian walks on a road on the 110 freeway in Los Angeles, this Friday, March 10.
Authorities ordered evacuations Friday in Northern California after a new atmospheric river brought heavy rain, thunderstorms and winds. Jae C. Hong / AP
The state Office of Emergency Services has arranged flood vehicles, search and rescue teams and fire resources to respond to the areas most vulnerable to flooding and flooding rivers, Nancy Ward told the Los Angeles Times.
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As of 6:16 pm (local time) this Friday, the National Weather Service had more than 70 flood watches and warnings in effect in California.
Meanwhile, more than a dozen sites near rivers and streams were above flood stage, including the Eel, Russian, Salinas Carmel, Sacramento, Merced and Cosumnes rivers and Bear Creek, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Authorities in Paso Robles (San Luis Obispo County), Santa Cruz and Kernville (Kern County) reported people evacuated and rescues of others who were trapped in the floods.
Despite the fact that the storm is expected to withdraw on Sunday, the threat will remain latent as another atmospheric river would affect the state early next week, and "there is the possibility of a third around March 19," according to information from the climatologist Mike Anderson, quoted by the Los Angeles Times.
