News Article " With toll rising, California braces for more rain" [Article ID: 19]
Category: National>Events
Date Posted: 2/22/2005
LOS ANGELES - Californians braced for even more rain Tuesday as they struggled to recover from storms that have left at least nine people dead, triggered mudslides and tornadoes, and washed away roads and runways. Among the victims was a Nevada woman caught in an avalanche while cross-country skiing near Lake Tahoe, and a 16-year-old Orange County girl doing homework on a computer when a mudslide crashed through the wall of her home.
In Ventura County, officials closed the small Santa Paula airport Tuesday after more than 155 feet of runway collapsed into the rushing Santa Clara River. Chunks of concrete crumbled into the water throughout the day. “We’ve lost nearly the entire west third of the airport,” said Rowena Mason, president of the Santa Paula Airport Association. “This is millions and millions of dollars worth of damage.” Forecasters said another strong system expected early Wednesday could bring severe winds and drop an additional inch or more of rain on Southern California.
Watches and warnings Despite brief glimpses of sun, a flash flood watch was in effect across much of Southern California on Tuesday. A tornado warning was also issued for coastal areas. Authorities said dozens of homes were evacuated or red-tagged — marked as uninhabitable — because they threatened to collapse from sliding hillsides. Mudslides forced Amtrak officials to suspend train service north of Los Angeles to Santa Barbara at least through Thursday.
The wild weather came from a series of storms that began battering the state on Thursday, dumping 8.15 inches of rain on downtown Los Angeles. A total of 33.95 inches of rain had fallen in the city since July 1, when California begins its yearly rainfall measurements. The record, 38.18 inches, was set in 1883-1884.
Federal disaster declaration sought Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn asked Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to urge President Bush to issue a federal disaster declaration for the city, which could open the way for federal assistance. The mayor said damage exceeded $10 million.
Northern California also was hit by severe thunderstorms and hail. Trees were uprooted and roofs and fences damaged by two small tornadoes near Sacramento.Rain in Northern California tapered off Tuesday, with only isolated showers expected by Wednesday, said Bob Benjamin, a NWS forecaster. Water rescues occurred across the state. Three people were treated for minor injuries after they swam to safety Tuesday when their SUV skidded on wet pavement in Anaheim and flipped into a river.
Ocean rescue Harbor Patrol officers had to battle high waves and wind early Monday off the coast of Santa Barbara to rescue a man whose sailboat was adrift with no mast and no engine power. They couldn’t get close enough to pull him from the vessel, so they had him jump overboard and then dived in after him.
“You couldn’t see what was coming. We were holding on for dear life,” said Officer Jan Martinez. “The waves were coming at such close intervals we’d push up through one, then come down just as another one was breaking on us.”
