On a Thursday in February four years ago, the self-described “low-level civil servant” who produces OnthePublicRecord.org, an anonymous blog about California water, posted an existential lament about life amid the policy wonks.
“Sometimes I wonder what terrible thing I did wrong in a previous lifetime that I must now spend so much of my time in windowless hotel ballrooms, listening to people read slides to me,” wrote the blogger.
This is it folks. This year’s Monster El Niño has finally hit! The incessant ringing of flash flood and tornado warnings on everyone’s phones are causing panic and chaos all over Southern California. Branches are falling, bugs are drowning, fire alarms are ringing and umbrellas are being torn to shreds. San Diegans are wondering why they never invested in a good pair of rain boots. People going out to buy their first umbrella in years are wondering why this never occurred to them before. UCSD students are shaking their fists at professors who refuse to cancel class even as inches of water cascades down the lecture hall stairs. As you cower under your comforters this week debating whether or not going to class will kill you, here are some tips on how to survive this year’s onslaught of water from above.
Q: With all the rain we’ve received recently, we’ve turned off our irrigation system. What else can we do to conserve during winter?
A: You’re off to a great start by turning off sprinklers; outdoor water use accounts for more than half of water use in a typical home. There are indeed other ways to save as the focus shifts to indoor water use.
Several Central Coast reservoirs are gathering water from this week’s storms.
In Santa Barbara County, the Cachuma and Gibraltar Reservoirs, both at their lowest levels in decades, saw an increase in depth. Gibraltar gained about one foot, while Cachuma saw about fifth of a foot.
Gibraltar Reservoir, Santa Barbara County
Credit santabarbaraca.gov
The reservoirs in San Luis Obispo County are seeing increases from rainfall as well.
The first major El Niño storm system finished its path through Southern California on Thursday, giving officials a chance to study both the behavior of the storms and how officials responded to them.
The assessments are important because forecasters are predicting a winter of heavy, potentially destructive rain because of the El Niño weather pattern.
The sun shone down on the suddenly soddened Santa Clarita Valley Thursday, but officials warn the at-times heavy rainstorms seen this week could be just the first taste of what’s to come as the historically strong El Nino weather event continues in the Pacific Ocean.
Back-to-back storms on Tuesday and Wednesday dropped almost 4 inches of rain in the Newhall Pass, with about 2 inches falling in Saugus, according to the latest records from the National Weather Service.
Gov. Jerry Brown’s $122.6 billion budget plan out Thursday contained $80.5 million for the restoration of habitat at the shrinking Salton Sea, the creation of a longterm plan for the lake’s management, and is raising hopes for its restoration, officials said.
“This $80.5 million will not fund the entire program, but it takes us a long way in the right direction,” said Bruce Wilcox, who Gov. Brown appointed in May as assistant secretary for Salton Sea Policy at the Natural Resources agency.
San Diego’s week of wild weather isn’t quite over yet, although it is winding down.
After repeated soakings in recent days — with a casualty list that includes battered businesses, flooded homes and waterlogged cars — many residents surely have this question on their minds: Is this just El Niño’s opening act?
In the short term, it’s safe to relax in terms of flash flooding, tornadoes and widespread clogging of storm drains.
As the latest El Niño rainstorm moved into Southern California, there were already signs that the combination of rain and gravity was creating problems.
Mud and debris flowed onto the 101 Freeway in northern Ventura County in an area that was recently burned in a fire, shutting northbound lanes.
Here are some questions and answers about mudslides.
Debris flow has long been a concern in areas where wildfires have recently burned. Vegetation, once burned, can no longer hold back loose sediment.
Roads were washed out, trees toppled, sinkholes formed and residents became trapped as strong El Niño storms swept through San Diego County Tuesday and Wednesday.
San Diego lifeguards worked swiftly to rescue people from rising water. One of those rescues took place Wednesday at Miramar Road and Cabot Drive, where lifeguards rushed to help four to five cars with people trapped inside.
The California Highway Patrol issued a Sig Alert for the 8100 block of Miramar Road as they continued rescues.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
