Flood warnings, frantic sandbag prep as atmospheric river barrels toward California
Saturday - Monday and a second storm likely on Tuesday
Be prepared for power outages, mudslides, downed trees. Flood safety videos within.
Before the drought, California was no stranger to the type of storm bearing down this weekend. So-called atmospheric rivers, like the one expected to drench much of the state Saturday through Monday, come five or six times each winter in a typical year. They can account for one-third or more of the states annual rainfall.
Nevertheless, a concurrence of factors has emergency officials and weather forecasters particularly alarmed about this weekend. The storm is expected to bring extremely heavy rainfall,
as much as 15 inches in some foothills communities, in a very short time throughout Northern California. No storm in the foothills the last 15 years has produced that much rain in three days, according to the National Climatic Data Center. -
Sacramento Bee