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As California Faces Storms, Extreme Winds Cause Power Outage in Sacramento


High winds hit the Sacramento area Saturday night, downing trees and knocking out power to more than 300,000 customers, as California braced for another set of storms this week that could cause more flooding, power outages and more and damage to trees, as well as dangerous landslides and snowy mountains.

Wind speeds reached nearly 70 mph Saturday night and early Sunday morning in the Sacramento area. The Sacramento Fire Department said at least one person was killed, a homeless woman was hit by a fallen tree.

As of Sunday afternoon, about 68,000 customers were still without power. A spokeswoman for the Sacramento City Utilities District said the company has dozens of crews working on the scene, but major damage from the storm means some customers will be without power throughout the night.

Parker Wilbourn, fire captain for the Sacramento City Fire Department, said they are responding with an “all-in-one” approach. Saturday night’s storm was particularly destructive, he said, bringing with it the rain, power outages and flooding the city has suffered.

The storm comes after a week of heavy rain across California that caused widespread flooding and downed countless trees. Six people were killed, including a toddler who was hit by a tree in Sonoma County.

“Each of these storms really just combined with the one that preceded it,” Mr. Wilbourn said. The worry now is what will happen when there is more rain in the coming days, he said. “Our land is saturated. So, you know, just a few more inches of rain and we could see another catastrophic event.”

The state is being hit by a group of atmospheric rivers – huge plumes of water vapor in the sky – in rapid succession. The strongest is expected to come Monday through Tuesday, renewing concerns from meteorologists about widespread damage.

“The West Coast remains the target of a relentless march of storms that form and strengthen over the Pacific Ocean while moving directly toward the North American continent,” forecasters at Weather Center said on Sunday morning.

Snow and heavy rain fell in Northern and Central California Saturday night but began to clear up in many places on Sunday.

In San Francisco, the sun shines among the scattered clouds in the morning, and residents take advantage of the drier weather there. More than 50 volunteers gathered at Manny’s, a cafe and civic gathering space in the heart of the city’s Mission District, to collect disco-themed trash. Music boomed in the cafe as volunteers of all ages, dressed in sparkly orange construction vests and disco ball necklaces, collected gloves and gear before radiating out onto the surrounding blocks.

Although there is a group that gathers every Sunday to help beautify the neighborhood, the organization has reached out more to get more volunteers involved in the post-storm cleanup. Rosamand Carr, a 26-year-old financial analyst who was involved in the cleanup, said: “Today, everyone was more excited to start running and rallying after everyone was alone indoors in the rain. storm.

Even so, she’s ready for the next storm. “I have my quizzes, I have my book,” she said. She has filled several water bottles with water, and has candles and flashlights on hand if the power goes out. “Also, we’re mentally preparing to cower inside,” she said.

The day before that, Elijah Kaplan, a 29-year-old video editor living in the Presidio neighborhood, had resigned herself to a longer wait for a major overhaul of her apartment, which sits under a hill and where water continues to seep in. wall every day. day. He laced his hiking boots and waded through knee-deep mud to dig a trench to get water out of his house, but he knew there were more storms to come.

“It’s been a tremendous pain and disrupts the lives of all of us, but we also acknowledge that we’ve been through a drought,” Mr Kaplan said. “Even this torrential rainfall is just a drop in the bucket for what California needs.”

On Monday morning, what some forecasters at the Los Angeles weather office call the “main show” begins. A strong atmospheric river will begin in the north of the state on Monday before moving south during the day and into Tuesday.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, many areas may experience rainfall that only occurs once every five or 10 years.

Total precipitation can reach 2 to 4 inches over most areas and possibly more than 8 inches along the coast and coastal ranges and along the western slopes of the Sierra.

“The duration and intensity of rain, combined with the cumulative impact of successive downpours from late December, will result in widespread and potentially severe flooding impacts,” the Forecast Center said. The weather said on Sunday morning.

Forecasters say there will be minor to isolated flooding on the major river, with river levels likely to be record highs.

Forecasters also expect strong winds of up to 60 mph Monday through Tuesday, which could lead to broader power outages in the region. Thunderstorms can include a brief tornado along or near parts of the central California coast.

In the higher parts of the Sierra, the threat associated with extreme snow can exceed 5 feet. The heavy weight of snow will increase the risk of avalanches and damage to infrastructure, said forecasters from the Weather Prediction Center.

Across the Sierra, winter storm severity index are at their peak, which means no travel is recommended, and widespread and widespread road closures and infrastructure disruptions are possible.

This storm system will be warmer than some of the previous ones. Snowfall will start at 5,000 feet but will increase above 6,500 to 8,000 feet throughout the day, meaning new snow areas will see rain, which will melt the snow and increase the amount of water entering the creeks and river. High levels of snow raise concerns about flooding, Sacramento National Weather Service Office speak.

The storm system will begin to weaken on Tuesday. On Wednesday, another system will kick in, although it is said to be weaker than the previous one. However, any rainfall will fall into an area prone to additional rainfall and could exacerbate river and creek surges.

There may be a short break before another atmospheric river is forecast over the weekend, which will bring more rainfall and a risk of flooding.

forecast in National Weather Service’s San Francisco Bay Area office says there’s a 60 percent to 80 percent chance that wetter-than-usual patterns will continue over the next few weeks.

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