California requires “several more storms” to make up for an unusually dry January that has plagued the southern half of the state, according to State Climatologist Michael Anderson.
California Department of Water Resources (CDWR) is pushing back on President Trump’s recent claim that the U.S. military entered the state and “turned on the water” in the wake of devastating wildfires that left lasting damage in the southern part of the state.
The White House on Sunday released an executive order by President Trump that laid out a plan to exert the federal government’s role in California’s complex water management operations and claimed its authority to overrule state officials. The order, dated Friday, comes after Mr. Trump traveled to the state to see the devastation from wildfires that have been raging in Los Angeles for weeks.
Rain that arrived late Saturday in San Diego County brought with it cautious optimism as officials removed most evacuation orders and warnings in the Border 2 fire area. Cal Fire officials said the Border 2 fire, which began Wednesday, was 6,225 acres in size and 40% contained as of Sunday evening. Officials credited the wet weather — a little less than half an inch of rain fell in the area — with helping firefighters make progress on containment.
President Donald Trump signed a sweeping executive order Sunday that told federal agencies to “immediately take action” to deliver more Central Valley water and eliminate rules that stand in the way, including endangered species protections. In the new order, Trump cited the Los Angeles fires, even though the actions he is ordering — delivering more water from the federal Central Valley Project — would primarily serve farms.
It only takes one spark. A downed power line, a stray ember carried by the wind or a sudden shift in the weather can turn a quiet afternoon into a disaster. We’ve seen it before. The wildfires of 2003 and 2007 devastated San Diego County, destroying thousands of homes, displacing families and leaving a lasting mark on our region. These fires weren’t just tragedies — they were hard lessons. And if there’s one thing we’ve learned, we can never afford to be complacent.
Los Angeles County officials missed dozens of opportunities for water infrastructure improvements that experts say probably would have enabled firefighters to save more homes during the Palisades fire, public records show.
As crews battled the blaze, attempting to extinguish flames that burned huge swaths of L.A. County and killed at least 11 people, some hydrants ran dry.
The board of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is considering the findings of a seven-month investigation into accusations against General Manager Adel Hagekhalil — a process that has revealed competing claims of discrimination and exposed deep divisions among leaders of the state’s largest urban water supplier.
The board met twice in closed session this week to consider the findings of five completed investigations, which have not been made public. Board members then voted to continue Hagekhalil’s leave of absence until their next meeting Wednesday.
With winds dying down on Friday throughout San Diego County and a ridge of high pressure moving out, we will see some major changes in the weekend forecast that include a significant drop in temperatures, cloudier skies, and, yes, a good chance for some light to moderate rain and snow in our local mountains. The chance for rain comes after Southern California has been pelted with Santa Ana winds for winds and wildfires have sparked up across the region.
As President Donald Trump prepares to tour wildfire damage in California, he’s zeroing in on one of his frequent targets for criticism: State water policy. Since the fires broke out Jan. 7, Trump has used social media and interviews to accuse the state of sending too much water to the Pacific Ocean instead of south toward Los Angeles and highlighted how some hydrants ran dry in the early hours of the firefight in Pacific Palisades.
