As yet another powerful storm threatens the state of California, residents of high-risk coastal districts have been told to evacuate.
The most recent storm, which has caused flights and school activities to be cancelled, has left approximately 100,000 people without power in the San Francisco Bay (76,000) and Central Coast areas (19,000).
Just days after another severe storm, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a state of emergency due to the threat of heavy rain, snow, and flooding from the approaching weather front, according to NBC.
NBC stated that there were mandatory evacuation orders in place for a number of Northern Californian cities, including Richmond in the Bay Area and Watsonville in Santa Cruz County.
Nine places were placed under a flood watch overnight, including the Los Angeles region, while Northern Californian highways were closed and motorists were warned to avoid the roads.
Up to 10 inches (25.4 cm) of rain was expected to fall during the storm in a region where the hills had already been soaked for a month.
“We predict that this may be one of the most challenging and impactful series of storms to touch down in California in the previous five years,” said Nancy Ward, head of the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.
Montecito, which is home to many famous people, including Oprah Winfrey and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, was one of the towns that received an evacuation order.
Over 100 homes were destroyed and 23 people perished there five years ago as massive stones, mud, and debris poured down slopes.
“What we’re talking about here is a lot of water coming over the top of the hills, falling down into the creeks and streams, and as it comes down, it develops pace and that’s what the initial risk is,” said Kevin Taylor, chief of the Montecito Fire Department.
Howling gusts affected several areas of Northern California, and photographs of uprooted trees, downed power lines, and submerged vehicles were shared.
Forecasters predicted that the storm’s strength will peak overnight in southern California, with Santa Barbara and Ventura counties likely to get the heaviest rainfall.
It’s one of three so-called atmospheric river storms to hit the drought-stricken state in the past week.
In Santa Barbara County, where heavy rain is anticipated for the evening, extensive flooding, and the release of debris flows, the first evacuations have been ordered for residents in regions scorched by three recent wildfires.
Although Susan Klein-Rothschild, a spokesperson for the county’s emergency operations centre, did not have a precise tally of the number of persons had to evacuate, she believed it to be in the hundreds.