Flash Flooding In Northern California Leads To Soaked Roads, Water Rescues And 1 Death
REDDING, California: Heavy rain and flash flooding soaked roads in Northern California, prompting water to be rescued from vehicles and homes and confirming at least one death, officials said Monday.
In the city of Redding, at the northern tip of the Central Valley, Mayor Mike Littau said in an online post Monday that a driver died after calling 911 and becoming stranded when his vehicle filled with water. Police said they received numerous calls for motorists stranded in flooded areas.
“The Redding police officer swam into the water, broke the windows, and pulled the victim to shore. CPR was administered, but the individual did not survive,” Littau wrote.
He warned that the weather could become even more dangerous in the coming days.
More rain was expected throughout Christmas week, as a series of atmospheric rivers were forecast to move toward Northern California, the National Weather Service said. Much of the Sacramento Valley and surrounding areas were under a flood watch until Friday.
Forecasters warned that the weather was expected to intensify by mid-week, leading to potential landslides, rockslides and flooding of creeks and creeks. Up to 6 feet (1.83 meters) of snow was expected to fall in parts of the Sierra Nevada, and winds could reach 55 mph (90 km/h) in higher elevations by Wednesday.
A wet Christmas can also be expected in Southern California, with heavy rain expected starting Tuesday evening. The National Weather Service urged people to make backup plans for holiday travel.
The National Weather Service said 3 to 6 inches (7.6 centimeters and 15.2 centimeters) fell in Redding and surrounding areas Sunday night.
As of Monday morning, local roads in Redding were flooded as street crews worked to clear debris and tow abandoned cars.
At the deco, Cruz waded through knee-deep muddy water to check out a friend’s flooded tire business, where the office was filled with jumbled furniture and wobbling tires.
Firefighters in Truckee held out ladders to residents trapped in a home along the South Yuba River in the Donner Peak ravine area, according to information the fire department posted online Sunday. No injuries were reported.
Atmospheric rivers are long, narrow bands of water vapor that form over the ocean and flow across the sky, carrying moisture from the tropics to northern latitudes.
Persistent atmospheric rivers are soaking Washington state with nearly 5 trillion gallons (19 trillion liters) of rain a week, threatening record flood levels, meteorologists said earlier this month. This precipitation was overloaded by hot temperatures and weather, as well as unusual weather conditions, ranging from tropical cyclones in Indonesia.
