Another atmospheric river engulfed California on Tuesday, worsening pressures faced by residents still trying to recover from weeks of relentless storms.
The latest storm put nearly 27,000 people under evacuation orders due to flooding and landslide risks and caused 16 major rivers in the state to overflow.
On the Pajaro River a broken levee caused by a similar storm on Friday was again overwhelmed, flooding farms, roads and submerging the entire town of Pajaro and forcing thousands of residents to flee.
Atmospheric rivers are named as such because they are caused by narrow, river-like formations of concentrated moisture in the atmosphere. They can dump huge amounts of rain, causing flooding and mudslides.
Another atmospheric river engulfed California on Tuesday, worsening pressures faced by residents still trying to recover from weeks of relentless storms
Parts of the Pajaro city center remain flooded after a levee was breeched on the Pajaro River in Monterey County after another storm on Friday
An atmospheric river caused major flooding of rivers in more than 16 locations across the state
Atmospheric rivers are named as such because they are caused by narrow, river-like formations of concentrated moisture in the atmosphere (shown in pink)
California’s most recent atmospheric river is expected to continue affecting the state until Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service
‘Lives and property are in great danger from Tuesday into Wednesday,’ the weather service said in its California forecast, warning residents to expect flash flooding in areas that do not normally experience it.
Damaging winds with speeds of 70 mph blew out windows, and there were numerous reports of falling trees.
Power outages hit more than 330,000 utility customers in northern and central areas, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks outages nationwide.
Crews raced to stabilize the Pajaro River’s ruptured levee on Tuesday, placing rocks and boulders to finish filling the gap that opened on March 10. The broken levee is about 70 miles south of San Francisco.
Tuesday’s storm initially spread light to moderate rain over the state’s north and center. The National Weather Service said the storm was moving faster than expected and that most of the precipitation would shift southward.
‘Even a small amount of rain could potentially have larger impacts,’ Shaunna Murray of the Monterey County Water Resources Agency said on Tuesday during a news conference.
Powerful winds damaged windows in a San Francisco high-rise, causing glass to rain down and forcing evacuations from the building in the financial district.
No injuries were immediately reported. A gust of 74 mph was recorded at the city’s airport, the weather service said.
A California plate is seen at an area affected by floods after days of heavy rain in Pajaro
The breached levee is being repaired on the Pajaro River in Monterey County
Laundry carts sit in floodwaters outside of the flooded Pajaro Coin Laundry on March 14
A military vehicle drives through floodwaters in Pajaro, California
Floodwaters surround farm machinery in the community of Pajaro in Monterey County
So far this winter, California has been battered by 10 atmospheric rivers as well as powerful storms fueled by arctic air that produced blizzard conditions.
In addition to evacuation orders, more than 71,600 people were under evacuation warnings and 546 people were in shelters by Tuesday morning, said Brian Ferguson, spokesperson for the California Office of Emergency Services. Updated figures were not immediately available.
More flooding was expected on the central coast, where the Pajaro levee gave way. Authorities had not received reports of any deaths or missing persons related to the storm as of Monday.
Pajaro is an unincorporated community known for its strawberry crops and was almost entirely flooded. More than 8,500 people were told to evacuate and nearly 250 people have been rescued by first responders since Friday.
‘We live seven houses away from the river and the water level was six feet high, seven probably,’ said evacuee Andres Garcia. ‘So we probably lost everything.’
The weather service has predicted that the atmospheric river will continue ‘producing numerous rounds of heavy rain and mountain snow for central/southern portions of the state through tonight’.
It went on: ‘Heavy rain combined with snowmelt below 5,000 feet is likely to result in widespread instances of flooding, especially for areas that are still extremely vulnerable from recent rainfall.
‘Some significant flooding impacts are possible. Widespread Flood Watches, Warnings, and Advisories are in effect, along with a High Risk (level 4/4) of Excessive Rainfall across parts of the southern Sierra Nevada foothills and central/southern California coast.’
Authorities had not received reports of any deaths or missing persons related to the storm as of Monday
A couple take coins out of washing machines inside the flooded Pajaro Coin Laundry
In its California forecast the National Weather Service said: ‘Lives and property are in great danger from Tuesday into Wednesday’
Atmospheric rivers can carry up to 15 times the volume of the Mississippi River, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. They appear as a trail of wispy clouds that can stretch for hundreds of miles.
In 2019, an atmospheric river nicknamed the ‘Pineapple Express’ hit California. The water vapor from near Hawaii brought rain, triggered mudslides and forced motorists to swim for their lives.
In 2021, an atmospheric river dumped a month’s worth of rain on British Columbia in two days, prompting fatal floods and landslides, devastating communities and severing access to Canada’s largest port.
There are projected to be 10 percent fewer atmospheric rivers in the future but they are expected to be 25 percent wider and longer and carry more water, according to a research paper from 2018.