A winter storm that left LA’s streets awash has spiralled onwards towards the Rockies.
by Peter Gibbs
A winter storm that left LA’s streets awash has spiralled onwards towards the Rockies, leaving floods in its wake across parts of Nevada and Arizona.
The storm hit Southern California during Wednesday 29th December, giving downtown Los Angeles its wettest December day on record. A tornado was reported in the suburbs of Inglewood and Ladera Heights which ripped the roof off a house, brought down trees and damaged cars.
Power outages affected more than 140,000 homes across five counties in Southern California and several main roads were closed by flooding or mudslides. Further inland, heavy snow fell across the mountain areas, with up to 75cm or 30 inches on the higher slopes.
Meanwhile, hundreds of people were evacuated and a 14-mile stretch of highway was closed near Sedona, Arizona as floodwaters rose and around Las Vegas, Nevada, the rescue services were kept busy as several motorists stalled in deep water. A flash flood warning was posted in parts of Utah and at least one ski resort had to shut down due to high winds.
American forecasters are now tracking another Pacific storm which is expected to bring more strong winds and heavy rain, this time to the San Francisco Bay area. Up to 100mm of rain is expected, with potential for well over a metre of snow in the mountains of the Sierra Nevada.
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