A Third of California is Drenched in Water and Despair

California is bracing for the arrival of a powerful storm on Monday, coming on the heels of a weekend of heavy rainfall and widespread flooding that forced thousands to evacuate, washed out roads, and knocked out power. The storm, an atmospheric river, will bring heavy rains and strong winds to central California, where communities are still reeling from the devastation of previous flooding.

Over the weekend, numerous streams and rivers transformed into raging torrents, engulfing riverfront communities and causing widespread destruction. The Pajaro River’s levee ruptured, forcing over 8,500 people to evacuate, while thousands more were displaced due to floodwaters that inundated farmland and agricultural communities. The storm also triggered evacuations in San Luis Obispo county, where crews were monitoring levees, creeks, and rivers and filling sandbags.

The storms have also caused flooding, rockslides, and avalanches in northern Nevada, prompting Governor Joe Lombardo to expand an emergency declaration to include several counties. The National Weather Service has issued over 30 flood watches across the state, warning residents to “rush any preparations to completion before conditions go downhill later today.”

As the storm moves in, UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain warned that “it’s not going to take a whole lot of precipitation to result in immediate runoff and rises on rivers and streams, and flooding in urban areas.” The storms are the product of an atmospheric river, a high-altitude current of dense, subtropical moisture streaming into the west coast from the warm Pacific waters around Hawaii. It is the 11th such weather system to hit California this season, adding to an exceptionally wet and snowy winter in a state that has traditionally been plagued by drought and wildfires.

The growing frequency and intensity of such storms amid bouts of prolonged drought are symptomatic of human-caused climate change, experts say. The swing from one extreme to another has increased the difficulty of managing California’s precious water supplies while minimizing flood and wildfire risks. As the state struggles to cope with the severe weather, officials are urging residents to stay safe, travel cautiously, and follow local guidance throughout the continuation of this severe weather.

The storm is also expected to bring heavy, wet snow to higher-elevation areas, causing roof collapses and other hazards. The San Bernardino county sheriff’s department is investigating the role of late-February snowstorms in the deaths of at least eight people, most of them elderly, who died alone while snowbound in their homes over the past two weeks.

As California reels from the devastation of the storms, the federal government has declared an emergency in the state, ordering federal assistance to help state and local authorities cope with the severe weather. The coming storm is a sobering reminder of the harsh realities of human-caused climate change and the importance of swift and effective disaster preparedness and response.