Governor declared emergency in several counties, with near white-out snow conditions in parts of the Sierra Nevada
A powerful winter storm swept across California on Wednesday, with heavy rain and gusty winds leading to evacuation warnings for mudslides in parts of the southern part of the state, bringing near white-out snow conditions in the mountains and hazardous travel for millions of holiday drivers.
California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, declared a state of emergency in several counties, including Los Angeles.
“With atmospheric rivers, intense rainfall, and strong winds ahead, I’m declaring a state of emergency in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, and Shasta counties to activate emergency authorities and preposition resources to keep our communities safe,” Newsom said in a post on X.
Forecasters said southern California could see its wettest Christmas in years and warned about flash flooding. Areas scorched by January’s wildfires were under evacuation warnings, and Los Angeles county officials said on Tuesday they were going door to door to about 380 especially vulnerable homes, ordering residents to evacuate because of the risk of landslides and debris flows.
