A major winter storm approached California Wednesday causing crews to rush to clear storm drains in preparation for flooding and strong winds, as parts of the Midwest dealt with snow, ice or tornadoes, and the South recovered from strong overnight storms.
The "Pineapple Express" storm gets its name from the buildup of moisture in the tropical region around Hawaii and can bring intense rainfall and snow to the Western coast of the U.S.
In the San Francisco Bay Area, 8,500 sandbags distributed by officials weren’t enough to reach demand as forecasters warned of imminent flooding. The South San Francisco Unified School District announced classes for its 8,000 students would be canceled Thursday “out of an abundance of caution.”
The rain led to the cancellation of more than 60 flights at the San Francisco International Airport and delays of another 70, said Doug Yakel, an airport spokesman.
Heavy downpours accompanied by winds with gusts of up to 60 mph were expected later Wednesday and through Thursday and could cause flooding, downed trees and power outages, making driving conditions difficult, the National Weather Service said.
The storm comes days after a New Year's Eve downpour led to the evacuations of people in rural Northern California communities and the rescue of several motorists from flooded roads. A few levees south of Sacramento were damaged, increasing flooding in the mostly rural area.
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“Excessive rainfall over already saturated soils will result in rapid rises on creeks, streams and rivers as well as flooding in urban areas,” forecasters said in a report.
Tink Troy, who lives in South San Francisco, picked up some sandbags from the city’s public works department on Tuesday.
“They said (Saturday’s storm) was going to be bad, and it was really bad. Now they’re saying this one’s going to be worse. So I want to make sure I’m prepared and not having to do this when it’s pouring rain tomorrow,” she said.
The storms in California still aren’t enough to officially end the drought, now entering its fourth year. The U.S. Drought Monitor showed that most of the state is in severe to extreme drought.
“We know that it’ll take quite a bit of time and water to recover this amount of storage, which is why we don’t say that the drought is over once it starts raining,” said Jeanine Jones, drought manager for the California Department of Water Resources.
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Additional reporting by The Associated Press.
