For California 'one of the most dramatic weather days'
It's Monday. Yesterday was a weather day for the record books – and today could be too. In addition, the California Senate has a new leader.
If you're in California, you've probably experienced wild weather in the last 24 hours. The National Weather Service Called on Sunday “one of the most dramatic weather days in recent history.”
California's biggest storm so far this year whipped surf along the coast, sent tree limbs flying through the streets and snapped power lines as it ravaged the state. In much of Northern California, the storm's howling winds appeared to do more damage than the lashing rain, with gusts reaching 90 miles per hour in some areas, comparable to those of a Category 1 hurricane.
As of 5 a.m. today, that was more than 560,000 homes and businesses across the state without power, with the worst outages in the San Joaquin Valley, the Bay Area and the Central Coast. That was down from more than 800,000 at 10 p.m. Sunday, when utilities worked overnight to get the lights back on.
Forecasters warn that the worst still lies ahead for California. An atmospheric river hovering over the Los Angeles region is expected to bring precipitation to the already drenched lowlands and mountains well into the evening, and the rain could continue into tomorrow. A number of roads, especially in the canyons around Los Angeles, were hit by mud and rockslides overnight.
“The major wind and power outages will be the less dangerous part of the storm compared to what is about to unfold and is starting to unfold in Southern California,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles. told reporters Sunday evening. “If you're worried about the north, I'm more worried about the south and what's to come.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for eight Southern California counties, including Los Angeles, San Bernardino and San Diego. This allows the state to mobilize the National Guard for emergency assistance if necessary.
By Sunday evening, emergency responders had rescued drivers stranded in floodwaters in Los Angeles, mudslides had overtaken a section of a winding highway in Ventura County and evacuation orders had been issued for parts of Orange County.
The Santa Barbara Airport was abruptly closed on Sunday after the airport was flooded. Santa Barbara Unified schools will be closed Monday because of the storm, and the district will let families know today whether schools will be open for classes Tuesday.
Swain, the climate scientist, said going to work and school Monday morning — by car or on foot — would likely be a risky proposition for people in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.
“LA County will be at the center of this flood risk,” Swain said. “And the flood risk is very high, higher than we have seen in many years. This is something that is not normal.”
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And before you go: good news
Two wildlife experts have captured video footage of what they believe is a newborn great white shark off the coast of Southern California, an extremely rare sighting of the vulnerable species. The Los Angeles Times reports this.
The experts – Phillip Sternes, a doctoral student at UC Riverside, and Carlos Gauna, a videographer – made the discovery while reviewing drone footage they recorded this summer off the coast of Carpinteria, near Santa Barbara.
In the video, a small, light-colored great white shark appears to be shedding a layer of skin, evidence that the shark could be a newborn shark and possibly the youngest ever caught on camera in the wild, according to a recently published scientific paper by Sternes and Gauna.
If true, the images would be a breakthrough for researchers studying the species' reproductive habits. Scientists have not previously known where great white sharks are born or observed newborn young in the wild.
Thank you for reading. I'll come back tomorrow. Stay dry there. — Soumya
PS Here it is today's mini crossword.
Maia Coleman, Briana Scalia and Kellina Moore contributed to California Today. You can reach the team via CAtoday@nytimes.com.
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