California has woken up this Sunday with a persistent moderate rain. The precipitation has heralded the imminent arrival of hilary, the storm that has left at least one dead in its passage through the Mexican region of Baja California and that promises to leave large amounts of water in dozens of communities starting at 5:00 p.m. this day and throughout Monday. The state government has decreed a state of emergency and has asked the population to take all the necessary precautions against possible flooding in the desert counties of the entity.
Governor Gavin Newsom signed the emergency declaration this Saturday, when hilary it was still a category two hurricane. In the last few hours, the weather phenomenon has lost its strength and has degraded to a tropical storm with winds of up to 60 kilometers per hour. Nevertheless, hilary It has caused maximum alert after the National Hurricane Center (CNH) determined that the rains can cause “catastrophic and life-threatening” flooding.
hilary it has picked up speed in its approach to the United States. On Saturday the hurricane was advancing at a rate of 25 kilometers per hour, but in the last few hours it began to register about 40 kilometers per hour, according to the CNH. The increased pace means more ground will be covered, bringing the rains to communities in western Arizona and southern Nevada. They are locations accustomed to a low average rainfall and hilary it can leave them in a few hours the amount of rain of two years.
The forecast has made hundreds of inhabitants prepare for eventual showers. Especially in southwestern communities Of California. In Palm Springs, the popular resort town 170 kilometers east of Los Angeles, hundreds of residents were filling sandbags throughout Saturday to keep out water from atypical flooding. The authorities do not rule out the closure of the highways that lead to the natural parks of Death Valley and Joshua Tree.
This same scene could be seen in coastal cities such as Long Beach and San Pedro, located south of Los Angeles. The Weather Service has determined that there is only a 5% chance of coastal flooding. These cities, however, were the contact point for the last tropical storm that reached Californian soil. Known as El cordonazo de san Francisco, the meteorological phenomenon left a total of 48 deaths and dozens missing in September 1939.
The state government has mobilized some 7,500 elements of the California National Guard to assist the population in prevention tasks and rescues, if necessary. Of these, some 350 soldiers and 24 amphibious vehicles are already in position at what will be the first contact point of the storm. “My entire Administration is prepared to respond to this unprecedented storm,” he said. Newsom Saturday.
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The services of some coastal trains, which connect Los Angeles with San Diego, have been temporarily suspended. Some 2,000 workers on the state’s highway network have installed pumps to prevent flooding of roads in areas such as Orange County, which has a population of 3.1 million.
Local authorities have closed 10 Southern California public parks and four beaches in Orange and San Diego counties, leading to the cancellation of camping reservations for hundreds of people and the cancellation of concerts and events. audiences, including at the popular Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. The presence of public security forces and lifeguards in coastal towns has been reinforced. “The population is advised not to enter the sea during the storm,” says the state government.
Telephone and Internet companies have warned their users that service cuts may occur in the coming hours. The same has been warned by the state company in charge of the electrical network. The professional baseball and soccer leagues, the MLB and the MLS, respectively, rescheduled the games they had for Sunday.
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