SAN DIEGO — Thirty-six million Californians from Sonoma County to the U.S.-Mexico border are under weekend flood watches as the state faces the more potent of two early February storms.
The front’s rain and snow will be boosted by an atmospheric river, a firehose of precipitation, forecasters say. This atmospheric river is drawing from tropical climes, making it a “Pineapple Express.”
“All Californians in the storm’s path — especially those in Southern California — should prepare now,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement Friday.
Dangerous flooding across the state was possible through Tuesday, forecasters said, with 6 inches or more of rain possible along the Central Coast and into the Los Angeles County coast.
If the upper end of those estimates are reached, they could break rainfall records for the date and even monthly precipitation records, according to NBC News forecasters.
The storm was expected to hit the Bay Area as early as Saturday, then work its way down the coast, impacting San Diego last.
The Bay Area could also be affected by damaging winds. The National Weather Service office in Monterey said gusts of nearly 70 mph could whip the Central Coast community of Big Sur.
Flooding possible
The upper-level low pressure system could stall over California once it gets to the coast late Saturday, forecasters say, making its flood potential more perilous.
On Friday night, Santa Barbara County officials issued evacuation warnings for two areas, including one affected by brush fires and another within the city of Santa Barbara. The warnings mean residents should be prepared to get out at a moment’s notice and should consider leaving as soon as possible, the county said in a statement.
Flood watches, issued when conditions are favorable for flooding, will cover the coast in Sonoma, Marin, San Francisco, Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties, and all of Southern California’s coast. Some of the watches start Saturday and last at least through the end of…
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