Post by erik on Aug 19, 2023 16:36:50 GMT -8
I know this will come as a huge shock to those who live in those parts of America (Gulf Coast; Atlantic Coast) where these things occur, but at this moment Southern California is under an actual Tropical Storm warning for the first time ever.
Hurricane Hilary, which had been at Category 4 status since yesterday morning, is now down to a Category 2 storm, with winds at its center approaching 100 miles per hour. The eye is situated over the warm waters off of Baja, less than 500 miles from San Diego, with forward speed towards the north-northwest at 16 miles per hour. While it will lose hurricane status by daybreak tomorrow, its outer cloud shield has already reached San Diego and Los Angeles; and its outer rain bands are forecast to move in overnight. It will become the first-ever named tropical cyclone to hit Southern California when it gets here.
The amount of rain we are expected to get in both Los Angeles and San Diego may be massive: two to seven inches, which is almost one hundred times what either city typically gets in August, and which will almost certainly result in a lot of urban/street flooding. Places like Palm Springs may actually see three average years worth of rainfall from just this one storm, which will create massive flash flooding in the desert areas. It will be even heavier in the mountains in and around L.A., as much as ten to twelve inches, which creates all kinds of troubles for residents living in those areas that have been burned by brush fires of the last several years. Potentially damaging winds of 45-60 miles per hour are likely, with violent thunderstorms and even the possibility of tornadic activity in some of the storm's most vigorous rain bands.
This is potentially one for the record books.
Hurricane Hilary, which had been at Category 4 status since yesterday morning, is now down to a Category 2 storm, with winds at its center approaching 100 miles per hour. The eye is situated over the warm waters off of Baja, less than 500 miles from San Diego, with forward speed towards the north-northwest at 16 miles per hour. While it will lose hurricane status by daybreak tomorrow, its outer cloud shield has already reached San Diego and Los Angeles; and its outer rain bands are forecast to move in overnight. It will become the first-ever named tropical cyclone to hit Southern California when it gets here.
The amount of rain we are expected to get in both Los Angeles and San Diego may be massive: two to seven inches, which is almost one hundred times what either city typically gets in August, and which will almost certainly result in a lot of urban/street flooding. Places like Palm Springs may actually see three average years worth of rainfall from just this one storm, which will create massive flash flooding in the desert areas. It will be even heavier in the mountains in and around L.A., as much as ten to twelve inches, which creates all kinds of troubles for residents living in those areas that have been burned by brush fires of the last several years. Potentially damaging winds of 45-60 miles per hour are likely, with violent thunderstorms and even the possibility of tornadic activity in some of the storm's most vigorous rain bands.
This is potentially one for the record books.