California Fears Worst is Yet to Come as Spring Brings Stormy Weather

As California goed on its first full day of spring, the state continued to bear the brunt of a relentless barrage of storms, with the nation’s 12th atmospheric river since late December unleashing yet another round of heavy rain and snow. The relentless rain and winds have brought the state to a standstill, leaving thousands without power and widespread flooding reported across the Bay Area.

California, which had experienced a severe drought just a few years prior, has been inundated with water, with mountains becoming so heavy with snow that roofs have caved in and crews have struggled to clear highways of debris. The storms have also brought winds of up to 80mph, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake.

The fury of the winds has been particularly devastating, with reports of trees being toppled left and right, power lines snapping, and debris littering the streets. In the Bay Area, five deaths have been linked to the storm, with two people dying in the hospital from injuries sustained from separate tree impacts, and a man in Oakland being killed when a tree fell on his tent.

As the state struggles to come to terms with the scale of the damage, officials are warning that the worst is yet to come, with flood risks remaining across the region until Wednesday. The Mammoth Mountain resort, nestled in the eastern Sierra Nevada, announced that it would remain open for skiing and snowboarding at least until the end of July, even as the state’s significant snowpack begins to melt.

Meanwhile, over 114,000 households and businesses were still without power, with many homes in the mountainous areas still buried in snow. Displaced residents in flooded areas along the coast and in the Central Valley wait anxiously for the waters to recede, as flood advisories remain in effect.

As the state struggles to recover from the latest bout of severe weather, the National Weather Service has warned that the risks will not dissipate anytime soon. With rain and snowmelt expected to cause flooding on Wednesday in southern California and central Arizona, Californians will need to remain vigilant in the coming days.