Was Hurricane Hilary overhyped?
As Hurricane Hilary barreled toward Southern California last week, the storm made international news as forecasters warned of the possibility for life-threatening and catastrophic flooding from heavy rains, especially in the mountains and deserts. Officials issued the region’s first-ever tropical storm watch — later upgraded to a warning — for a broad swath of the Southland as the cyclone’s path grew more clear, likely to become the first storm of that strength to hit the region in decades. And although the system turned out to be historic for Southern California — dumping record summer rainfall and hitting tropical storm wind speeds recorded only twice in the last century — weather officials say the situation was not unheard-of for the region.
Related articles: