Topsy turvy weather across the US by Kaye Forster
Extreme weather contrasts have been dramatically evident across the western half of the United States over the past few days.
North-western states have been battered by another Pacific storm, just days after a severe storm brought torrential rain and flooding to the area. Parts of Oregon and Washington were still mopping up after the last storm when the recent wet weather arrived.
Heavy rain to lower levels and snow to the higher routes of the Rocky Mountains exacerbated the problems as the pressure system edged slowly eastwards.
These consecutive spells of wet weather have been blamed on the ‘Pineapple Express’ – a sub-tropical jet which brings warm, moist air to western states of the US. The combination of moisture-laden air, atmospheric dynamics, and orographic enhancement resulting from the passage of this air over the mountain ranges, causes some of the most torrential rain to occur in the region.
Meanwhile south-western parts of the US have been battling wildfires over the past few days. In California, fires broke out during Sunday evening due to dry and windy conditions, and quickly burned through dense brush and trees in the Lake Elsinore area. Over 300 homes have been threatened by the blazes and several people have already been asked to evacuate their homes.
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