Pacific Storm to Bring Rain & Potential Hazards Sunday
A five-year-vintage girl is missing and her father died after being swept into the ocean by a wave at Garrapata State Park in Big Sur, California, on Friday afternoon, authorities reported. The incident occurred as a powerful Pacific storm brought intense rainfall to Southern California, increasing the risk of life-threatening flooding, landslides, and debris flows.
The National Weather Service (NWS) had issued flood alerts for parts of southwestern California, including Los Angeles County, which were lifted early Sunday morning, according to a 1:00 a.m. Miami time report (10:00 p.m. Pacific time Saturday). The NWS warned of minor flooding in low-lying and poorly drained areas, rising water levels in small streams and normally dry channels, and water accumulation in urban areas. Minor debris flows were also possible in recently burned areas.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued evacuation orders Friday for “vulnerable properties” in the Palisades, Hurst, and Sunset areas, anticipating the storm’s impact. The storm, which began impacting Northern and Central California on Thursday, delivered rainfall totals exceeding monthly averages in many locations by Saturday.
The current storm is occurring at the beginning of California’s rainy season, with December through February typically being the wettest months in the region.
Further south, a tropical storm named Priscilla is strengthening in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico. As of early Sunday, Priscilla was classified as a “large tropical storm” with maximum sustained winds of 65 mph, located approximately 305 miles south-southwest of Cabo Corrientes and moving northwest at 5 mph. A tropical storm warning is in effect for portions of the southwestern Mexican coast, from Punta San Telmo to Punta Mita, with tropical storm conditions expected Sunday and Monday. The National Hurricane Center forecasts rainfall totals of up to 6 inches and warns of life-threatening rip currents and high surf.
The National Hurricane Center predicts Priscilla could reach hurricane status late Sunday or early Monday, and is expected to move generally parallel to the coast in the coming days. Another tropical storm, Octave, is also present off the coast of Mexico, but is not currently forecast to create landfall and has no associated coastal alerts.
In a separate development, the Mexican National Meteorological Service (SMN) is forecasting the formation of a cyclone in the Pacific Ocean and has issued alerts for intense rainfall and extreme heat in the northwest of the country.