Series of drenching California storms put dent in drought
Series of drenching California storms put dent in drought
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 10, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought. (National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 3, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought.(National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
Following days of rain, floodwaters surround homes and vehicles in the Planada community of Merced County, Calif., on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
A pedestrian carries an umbrella while walking toward a path in front of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Rain falls as a pedestrian walks up a hill carrying an umbrella in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Storm-ravaged California is scrambling to clean up and repair widespread damage. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Pedestrians carrying umbrellas crossing in front of Cable Cars in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Waves in the Monterey Bay batter the storm-damaged Capitola Wharf in Capitola, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. The Wharf is seen through a passageway on the Capitola Esplanade. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Wind damage is seen on Highland Avenue in Santa Cruz, Calif., Tuesday evening, Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
A Capitola police officer tapes off dangerous areas of driftwood along Capitola Beach as strong waves continue to batter the central California coast in Capitola, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Muddy terrain is seen on Covered Bridge Road in Felton, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023, between floods. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
A van is covered by a fallen tree along Covered Bridge Road in Felton, Calif., Tuesday Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
A cyclist tries to keep the rain at bay while pedaling on River Street in Santa Cruz, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Renter Jose Alvarez and his family lived in the South San Francisco apartment building that had its roof partially blown off by wind gust in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)
Renter Jose Alvarez looks at streams of water pouring into his family’s bedrooms as they tried to salvage belongings from the South San Francisco apartment building which had its roof partially blown off by wind gust in San Francisco Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)
Renter Jose Alvarez looks at streams of water pouring into his family’s bedrooms as they tried to salvage belongings from the South San Francisco apartment building which had its roof partially blown off by wind gust in San Francisco Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)
Resident Laurie Morse, 59, shovels wet sand into bags in the pouring rain, a last ditch effort to keep a rising creek out of her garage in the town of Rio Del Mar in Aptos, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Her roof was leaking, and along with her neighbors. The town has been dealing with every problem brought by the series of rainstorms rolling through California: massive logs and stumps are tumbling down the bloated Aptos Creek from the Santa Cruz mountains into the Monterey Bay, where high tides and large swells are tossing them back up the beach and into town. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
Resident Laurie Morse, 59, shovels wet sand into bags in the pouring rain, a last ditch effort to keep a rising creek out of her garage in the town of Rio Del Mar in Aptos, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Her roof was leaking, and along with her neighbors. The town has been dealing with every problem brought by the series of rainstorms rolling through California: massive logs and stumps are tumbling down the bloated Aptos Creek from the Santa Cruz mountains into the Monterey Bay, where high tides and large swells are tossing them back up the beach and into town. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
Resident Laurie Morse, 59, shovels wet sand into bags in the pouring rain, a last ditch effort to keep a rising creek out of her garage in the town of Rio Del Mar in Aptos, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Her roof was leaking, and along with her neighbors. The town has been dealing with every problem brought by the rainstorms rolling through California: massive logs and stumps are tumbling down the bloated Aptos Creek from the Santa Cruz mountains into the Monterey Bay, where high tides and large swells are tossing them back up the beach and into town. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
A pedestrian carries an umbrella while walking past a painting of the American flag in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Storm-ravaged California is scrambling to clean up and repair widespread damage. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
This undated photo provided by the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office shows a photo of 5-year-old Kyle Doan who the authorities are searching for. The search resumed Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023, for the 5-year-old boy who was swept away by floodwaters a day earlier on the state’s central coast. Doan, who has dirty blonde hair, was wearing a black puffer jacket and blue jeans when the truck he was in with his mother became stranded in rising waters near Paso Robles, according to the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office. (San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office via AP)
Pauline Torres carries belongings from her flooded Merced, Calif., home on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Floodwaters course through a neighborhood in Merced, Calif., on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. Following days of rain, Bear Creek overflowed its banks leaving dozens of homes and vehicles surrounded by floodwaters. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Following days of rain, floodwaters surround homes and vehicles in the Planada community of Merced County, Calif., on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
In this image taken with a drone, a vehicle is stuck in a sinkhole in the Chatsworth section of Los Angeles, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. Sinkholes swallowed cars and raging torrents swamped towns and swept away a small boy Tuesday as California was wracked by more wild winter while the next system in a powerful string of storms loomed on the horizon. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Floodwaters surround homes on Thornton Rd. in Merced, Calif., as storms continue battering the state on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
PG&E workers toil in the evening above Highland Avenue to replace equipment damaged by high winds in Santa Cruz, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Muddy streets in the Felton Grove neighborhood of Felton, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
Extensive damage to homes and businesses on Capitol Avenue in Sacramento, Calif., is seen Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023, following a storm Saturday night that downed trees and power lines throughout the region. (Xavier Mascareñas/The Sacramento Bee via AP)
A resident attempts to help a vehicle stuck on Fredonia Drive in Studio City, Calif., where a mudslide is blocking the road during a rain storm on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. California saw little relief from drenching rains as the latest in a relentless string of storms swamped roads, turned rivers into gushing flood zones and forced thousands of people to flee from towns with histories of deadly mudslides.(Sarah Reingewirtz /The Orange County Register via AP)
A resident keeps watch on Fredonia Drive in Studio City, Calif., where a mudslide is blocking the road during a rain on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. California saw little relief from drenching rains as the latest in a relentless string of storms swamped roads, turned rivers into gushing flood zones and forced thousands of people to flee from towns with histories of deadly mudslides.(Sarah Reingewirtz /The Orange County Register via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 10, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought. (National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 3, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought. (National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 10, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought. (National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 10, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought. (National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 3, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought.(National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 3, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought.(National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
Following days of rain, floodwaters surround homes and vehicles in the Planada community of Merced County, Calif., on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Following days of rain, floodwaters surround homes and vehicles in the Planada community of Merced County, Calif., on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
A pedestrian carries an umbrella while walking toward a path in front of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
A pedestrian carries an umbrella while walking toward a path in front of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Rain falls as a pedestrian walks up a hill carrying an umbrella in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Storm-ravaged California is scrambling to clean up and repair widespread damage. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Rain falls as a pedestrian walks up a hill carrying an umbrella in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Storm-ravaged California is scrambling to clean up and repair widespread damage. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Pedestrians carrying umbrellas crossing in front of Cable Cars in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Pedestrians carrying umbrellas crossing in front of Cable Cars in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Waves in the Monterey Bay batter the storm-damaged Capitola Wharf in Capitola, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. The Wharf is seen through a passageway on the Capitola Esplanade. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Waves in the Monterey Bay batter the storm-damaged Capitola Wharf in Capitola, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. The Wharf is seen through a passageway on the Capitola Esplanade. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Wind damage is seen on Highland Avenue in Santa Cruz, Calif., Tuesday evening, Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Wind damage is seen on Highland Avenue in Santa Cruz, Calif., Tuesday evening, Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
A Capitola police officer tapes off dangerous areas of driftwood along Capitola Beach as strong waves continue to batter the central California coast in Capitola, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
A Capitola police officer tapes off dangerous areas of driftwood along Capitola Beach as strong waves continue to batter the central California coast in Capitola, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Muddy terrain is seen on Covered Bridge Road in Felton, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023, between floods. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Muddy terrain is seen on Covered Bridge Road in Felton, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023, between floods. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
A van is covered by a fallen tree along Covered Bridge Road in Felton, Calif., Tuesday Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
A van is covered by a fallen tree along Covered Bridge Road in Felton, Calif., Tuesday Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
A cyclist tries to keep the rain at bay while pedaling on River Street in Santa Cruz, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
A cyclist tries to keep the rain at bay while pedaling on River Street in Santa Cruz, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Renter Jose Alvarez and his family lived in the South San Francisco apartment building that had its roof partially blown off by wind gust in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)
Renter Jose Alvarez and his family lived in the South San Francisco apartment building that had its roof partially blown off by wind gust in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)
Renter Jose Alvarez looks at streams of water pouring into his family’s bedrooms as they tried to salvage belongings from the South San Francisco apartment building which had its roof partially blown off by wind gust in San Francisco Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)
Renter Jose Alvarez looks at streams of water pouring into his family’s bedrooms as they tried to salvage belongings from the South San Francisco apartment building which had its roof partially blown off by wind gust in San Francisco Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)
Renter Jose Alvarez looks at streams of water pouring into his family’s bedrooms as they tried to salvage belongings from the South San Francisco apartment building which had its roof partially blown off by wind gust in San Francisco Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)
Renter Jose Alvarez looks at streams of water pouring into his family’s bedrooms as they tried to salvage belongings from the South San Francisco apartment building which had its roof partially blown off by wind gust in San Francisco Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)
Resident Laurie Morse, 59, shovels wet sand into bags in the pouring rain, a last ditch effort to keep a rising creek out of her garage in the town of Rio Del Mar in Aptos, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Her roof was leaking, and along with her neighbors. The town has been dealing with every problem brought by the series of rainstorms rolling through California: massive logs and stumps are tumbling down the bloated Aptos Creek from the Santa Cruz mountains into the Monterey Bay, where high tides and large swells are tossing them back up the beach and into town. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
Resident Laurie Morse, 59, shovels wet sand into bags in the pouring rain, a last ditch effort to keep a rising creek out of her garage in the town of Rio Del Mar in Aptos, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Her roof was leaking, and along with her neighbors. The town has been dealing with every problem brought by the series of rainstorms rolling through California: massive logs and stumps are tumbling down the bloated Aptos Creek from the Santa Cruz mountains into the Monterey Bay, where high tides and large swells are tossing them back up the beach and into town. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
Resident Laurie Morse, 59, shovels wet sand into bags in the pouring rain, a last ditch effort to keep a rising creek out of her garage in the town of Rio Del Mar in Aptos, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Her roof was leaking, and along with her neighbors. The town has been dealing with every problem brought by the series of rainstorms rolling through California: massive logs and stumps are tumbling down the bloated Aptos Creek from the Santa Cruz mountains into the Monterey Bay, where high tides and large swells are tossing them back up the beach and into town. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
Resident Laurie Morse, 59, shovels wet sand into bags in the pouring rain, a last ditch effort to keep a rising creek out of her garage in the town of Rio Del Mar in Aptos, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Her roof was leaking, and along with her neighbors. The town has been dealing with every problem brought by the series of rainstorms rolling through California: massive logs and stumps are tumbling down the bloated Aptos Creek from the Santa Cruz mountains into the Monterey Bay, where high tides and large swells are tossing them back up the beach and into town. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
Resident Laurie Morse, 59, shovels wet sand into bags in the pouring rain, a last ditch effort to keep a rising creek out of her garage in the town of Rio Del Mar in Aptos, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Her roof was leaking, and along with her neighbors. The town has been dealing with every problem brought by the rainstorms rolling through California: massive logs and stumps are tumbling down the bloated Aptos Creek from the Santa Cruz mountains into the Monterey Bay, where high tides and large swells are tossing them back up the beach and into town. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
Resident Laurie Morse, 59, shovels wet sand into bags in the pouring rain, a last ditch effort to keep a rising creek out of her garage in the town of Rio Del Mar in Aptos, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Her roof was leaking, and along with her neighbors. The town has been dealing with every problem brought by the rainstorms rolling through California: massive logs and stumps are tumbling down the bloated Aptos Creek from the Santa Cruz mountains into the Monterey Bay, where high tides and large swells are tossing them back up the beach and into town. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
A pedestrian carries an umbrella while walking past a painting of the American flag in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Storm-ravaged California is scrambling to clean up and repair widespread damage. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
A pedestrian carries an umbrella while walking past a painting of the American flag in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Storm-ravaged California is scrambling to clean up and repair widespread damage. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
This undated photo provided by the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office shows a photo of 5-year-old Kyle Doan who the authorities are searching for. The search resumed Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023, for the 5-year-old boy who was swept away by floodwaters a day earlier on the state’s central coast. Doan, who has dirty blonde hair, was wearing a black puffer jacket and blue jeans when the truck he was in with his mother became stranded in rising waters near Paso Robles, according to the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office. (San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office via AP)
This undated photo provided by the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office shows a photo of 5-year-old Kyle Doan who the authorities are searching for. The search resumed Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023, for the 5-year-old boy who was swept away by floodwaters a day earlier on the state’s central coast. Doan, who has dirty blonde hair, was wearing a black puffer jacket and blue jeans when the truck he was in with his mother became stranded in rising waters near Paso Robles, according to the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office. (San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office via AP)
Pauline Torres carries belongings from her flooded Merced, Calif., home on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Pauline Torres carries belongings from her flooded Merced, Calif., home on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Floodwaters course through a neighborhood in Merced, Calif., on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. Following days of rain, Bear Creek overflowed its banks leaving dozens of homes and vehicles surrounded by floodwaters. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Floodwaters course through a neighborhood in Merced, Calif., on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. Following days of rain, Bear Creek overflowed its banks leaving dozens of homes and vehicles surrounded by floodwaters. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Following days of rain, floodwaters surround homes and vehicles in the Planada community of Merced County, Calif., on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Following days of rain, floodwaters surround homes and vehicles in the Planada community of Merced County, Calif., on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
In this image taken with a drone, a vehicle is stuck in a sinkhole in the Chatsworth section of Los Angeles, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. Sinkholes swallowed cars and raging torrents swamped towns and swept away a small boy Tuesday as California was wracked by more wild winter while the next system in a powerful string of storms loomed on the horizon. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
In this image taken with a drone, a vehicle is stuck in a sinkhole in the Chatsworth section of Los Angeles, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. Sinkholes swallowed cars and raging torrents swamped towns and swept away a small boy Tuesday as California was wracked by more wild winter while the next system in a powerful string of storms loomed on the horizon. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Floodwaters surround homes on Thornton Rd. in Merced, Calif., as storms continue battering the state on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Floodwaters surround homes on Thornton Rd. in Merced, Calif., as storms continue battering the state on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
PG&E workers toil in the evening above Highland Avenue to replace equipment damaged by high winds in Santa Cruz, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
PG&E workers toil in the evening above Highland Avenue to replace equipment damaged by high winds in Santa Cruz, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Muddy streets in the Felton Grove neighborhood of Felton, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
Muddy streets in the Felton Grove neighborhood of Felton, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
Extensive damage to homes and businesses on Capitol Avenue in Sacramento, Calif., is seen Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023, following a storm Saturday night that downed trees and power lines throughout the region. (Xavier Mascareñas/The Sacramento Bee via AP)
Extensive damage to homes and businesses on Capitol Avenue in Sacramento, Calif., is seen Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023, following a storm Saturday night that downed trees and power lines throughout the region. (Xavier Mascareñas/The Sacramento Bee via AP)
A resident attempts to help a vehicle stuck on Fredonia Drive in Studio City, Calif., where a mudslide is blocking the road during a rain storm on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. California saw little relief from drenching rains as the latest in a relentless string of storms swamped roads, turned rivers into gushing flood zones and forced thousands of people to flee from towns with histories of deadly mudslides.(Sarah Reingewirtz /The Orange County Register via AP)
A resident attempts to help a vehicle stuck on Fredonia Drive in Studio City, Calif., where a mudslide is blocking the road during a rain storm on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. California saw little relief from drenching rains as the latest in a relentless string of storms swamped roads, turned rivers into gushing flood zones and forced thousands of people to flee from towns with histories of deadly mudslides.(Sarah Reingewirtz /The Orange County Register via AP)
A resident keeps watch on Fredonia Drive in Studio City, Calif., where a mudslide is blocking the road during a rain on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. California saw little relief from drenching rains as the latest in a relentless string of storms swamped roads, turned rivers into gushing flood zones and forced thousands of people to flee from towns with histories of deadly mudslides.(Sarah Reingewirtz /The Orange County Register via AP)
A resident keeps watch on Fredonia Drive in Studio City, Calif., where a mudslide is blocking the road during a rain on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. California saw little relief from drenching rains as the latest in a relentless string of storms swamped roads, turned rivers into gushing flood zones and forced thousands of people to flee from towns with histories of deadly mudslides.(Sarah Reingewirtz /The Orange County Register via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 10, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought. (National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 10, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought. (National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 3, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought. (National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
This map released courtesy of National Drought Mitigation Center shows California on Jan. 3, 2023. Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought. (National Drought Mitigation Center via AP)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter’s worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels — but experts say it will take much more precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought.
The U.S. Drought Monitor’s weekly update released on Thursday showed that “extreme” drought has been virtually eliminated a week after the worst category — “exceptional” — was washed off the map. Two weeks ago extreme drought covered 35% of California.
The Drought Monitor characterized the improvement as a significant reduction in drought intensity but cautioned that large parts of the state have moisture deficits that have been entrenched for two or three years.
Most of the state is now in the “severe” or “moderate” categories of drought, with small areas in the far northwest and far southeast in a status described as “abnormally dry,” which is the lowest level.
After significant damage to some communities and at least 18 deaths, California was in a lull between storms Thursday, but more precipitation was expected to arrive on Friday and continue through the weekend. Flooding remained a concern, especially along the Salinas River in Monterey County, because so much rain has fallen.
Downtown San Francisco, for example, received nearly 13.6 inches (34.5 centimeters) of rain from Dec. 26 to Jan. 10. Snowfall so far this season at the summit of the Mammoth Mountain resort in the Eastern Sierra hit 444 inches (11.3 meters).
In the Sierra Nevada and other mountains, the water content of the snowpack is more than 200% of normal to date and more than 100% of the April 1 average, when it is historically at its peak, according to the state Department of Water Resources.
“The automated sensors are registering what they would consider a full seasonal snowpack, about what we would expect on April 1,” state climatologist Michael Anderson told reporters this week.
The snowpack supplies roughly a third of California’s water when it melts and runs off into rivers and reservoirs.
Locally, some reservoirs have seen significant rises in water levels but there are still significant deficits to overcome.
Statewide, reservoir storage is only 82% of average for this time of year. The largest reservoir, Shasta, is at just 44% of capacity. That’s only 70% of average to date. The huge Oroville reservoir is closer to its average but at just 49% of capacity.
“The good news is that they’re off historic lows,” Anderson said of the big reservoirs. “The challenge is that they still have a lot of recovery to make before they would be back to normal operating conditions.”
And there’s concern that the rains could abruptly stop. The end of 2021 was marked by significant storms, but the start of 2022 saw months of bone-dry weather.
There are some hints of a drier pattern developing around Jan. 20, said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles, during an online briefing this week.
—-
AP reporter Olga R. Rodriguez contributed from San Francisco.
