Rain falls for a second day on parched California
By CHRISTOPHER WEBER, Associated Press
Updated 3:49 pm, Wednesday, December 3, 2014
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A storm that saturated California for a second-straight day on Wednesday appeared to be just what the dry state had hoped for, boosting reservoirs and awakening waterfalls while bringing few of the flooding problems that had been feared.One location, Yucaipa Ridge in the San Bernardino Mountains, had received 8.38 inches of rain, the National Weather Service said.
Throughout the state, residents and authorities kept watch on saturated slopes at risk for flooding and mudslides after being left barren by wildfires.
Despite the storm's scale, experts said it would take many more downpours to pull the state out of its three-year drought.
The storm likely opened a sinkhole in San Francisco, dropped snow in mountains key to the water supply, and made signature waterfalls flow at Yosemite National Park, including the 2,425-foot Yosemite Falls that had slowed to a trickle by mid-July.
"With the precipitation, they are looking good. They are flowing nicely," park spokeswoman Ashley Mayer said.
Flash flood watches were extended for wildfire burn areas, but worries about debris flows did not immediately materialize.
On Tuesday, gushing water and muddy debris poured from hillsides about 50 miles northwest of Los Angeles, forcing the evacuation of about 75 homes in Camarillo Springs for much of the day.
When the order was lifted, authorities urged people to stay away voluntarily. No major damage was reported.
In Orange County, about 60 homes in rural Silverado Canyon also were under a voluntary evacuation notice. The area burned over the summer and has been the site of previous mudslides.
In San Francisco, an overnight deluge likely caused a 10-foot-wide, 8-foot-long sinkhole.
The rain, expected to last through Thursday, has brought most of the San Francisco Bay Area close to or beyond normal annual rainfall totals for the first time in years.
Just before the storm arrived, the Sierra Nevada snowpack — which counts for most of the state's water supply — was at just 24 percent of normal for this time of year. But snow was building rapidly with reports of 10 inches of snowfall at elevations of 8,000 feet.
Southern California coastal residents faced another problem when a thick tangle of trash washed from city streets into storm drains and onto beaches. Crews in Long Beach were busy clearing the garbage, lifeguard captain Scott Dixon said.
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Associated Press writers John Antczak in Los Angeles and Kristin Bender in San Francisco contributed to this report.
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