Wednesday Top of the Scroll: Yet more rain is expected to hit California in March. But warmer storms could melt snow
Soggy, snow-capped California faces the likelihood of yet another month of wet weather, but what remains uncertain is whether this late winter precipitation will augment weeks of record-setting snowpack, or cause it to vanish should warmer rains arrive. Last week, a frigid storm transformed portions of the state into a white landscape while toppling trees, prompting power outages, spurring water rescues and leaving some residents trapped by heavy snow. Now, with forecasts calling for more rain and snow in March — including the potential for at least one more atmospheric river system — California is girding for what comes next. … Typically, California’s snowpack provides about one-third of the state’s water supply and has long been relied upon for its steady, slow melting during the hot, dry months of summer. A deluge of warm rain, however, could cause melting snow to fill rivers too quickly and trigger widespread flooding.
Related articles:
- Courthouse News Service: In like a lion: March to bring fresh snow and rain to California
- ABC 7 – Bay Area: Live Bay Area weather updates - Massive trees fall onto homes in North Bay
- ABC 10 – Sacramento: California Winter Storm - Tracking storm pipeline and potential for flooding
- San Francisco Standard: As California exits a megadrought, are we ready for a megaflood?
- Los Angeles Times: How the deluge of 1938 changed Los Angeles — and its river
- The San Diego Union-Tribune: Opinion - We should use technology to improve California’s ability to manage floods, water supplies