The latest in a series of atmospheric river storms soaked California on Tuesday, bringing another deluge of rain to the already-saturated state, while a Nor’easter swirling over New York and New England prompted emergency orders and closed roads. Several inches of rain was forecast in some areas of California, while as much as 3 feet (0.9 m) of fresh snow was expected in high-mountain elevations where snowdrifts already reach rooftops, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).
Along California’s coast and lower inland areas, the heavy rain and melting alpine snow triggered renewed flooding from rain-swollen rivers and streams, compromising levees. Forecasts warned of widespread uprooting of trees and downed power lines from winds gusting up to 70 miles per hour (113 km per hour). Nearly 370,000 homes and businesses were without electricity on Tuesday, mostly along California’s central coast and the San Francisco Bay area, according to data from PowerOutage.us.
In anticipation of the “atmospheric river” — an airborne current of dense, tropical moisture from the Pacific streaming over the landscape — emergency crews filled sandbags and patrolled levees and riverbanks around the clock. A previous spate of nine atmospheric rivers lashed California in rapid succession from late December through mid-January, triggering widespread flooding, levee failures, mudslides and punishing surf. At least 20 people perished.
Another such storm drenched much of the state on Thursday night and Friday, causing levee failures along the Pajaro River in Monterey County and…