Los Angeles: A huge Pacific storm that parked itself over Southern California and unloaded, ravaging roads, opening sinkholes and leading to the deaths of at least three people, eased off yesterday. But it was only a temporary reprieve as new storms took aim farther north.
The National Weather Service predicted drying weather followed by return of wet weather in the region. But while flash-flood watches for Southern California were cancelled, Northern California and San Francisco Bay Area were facing a weekend return of heavy rain and winds that lashed them earlier in the week before the storm moves out.
Authorities said the San Joaquin River is reaching flood stage, and they are warning residents in Manteca to be ready to evacuate in case it reaches dangerous levels.
“Stronger southerly winds and widespread flooding will be likely as an atmospheric river (of moisture) takes aim somewhere along the central California Coast,” a weather statement warned.
The approaching rain could cause more problems in far north, where damage to spillways of Lake Oroville dam forced evacuation of 188,000 people last weekend.
The California Department of Water Resources, however, said yesterday the level of Lake Oroville continues to fall despite stormy weather, and amount of water flowing down spillway continues to be cut. The amount of water flowing down the spillway has been reduced to 55,000 cubic feet per second, the department said. Earlier this week, outflows were at nearly 100,000 cubic feet per second.
Meanwhile, authorities up and down the state were dealing with the fallout, including overflowing creeks, mudslide threats in foothill areas denuded by previous fires, road collapses and hundreds of toppled trees in neighborhoods.
Northwest of Sacramento, nearly 200 people were evacuated Saturday as overflowing creeks turned the town of Maxwell into a brown pond, with some homes getting 2 feet of water. Fire Chief Kenny Cohen said nearly 100 homes and the elementary school filled with a couple inches of water before the water began receding. The area received about 3 inches of rain as of early yesterday, authorities said.
