FEROCIOUS WINDS KNOCKED DOWN TREES, RIPPED THROUGH FREEWAY AND STREET SIGNS, DELAYED HUNDREDS OF FLIGHTS AND KNOCKED OUT POWER FOR THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE IN CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA.
February 7,
2015
Children from San Francisco Community School walk through Chinatown
while on a field trip. (AP)
Ferocious
winds knocked down trees, ripped through freeway and street signs, delayed
hundreds of flights and knocked out power for thousands of people in California
and Nevada.
Nearly 10
inches of rain is expected to hit parts of the drought-stricken regions of
California. Although it will not make a significant help to the state's
historic dry spell, it will be the first time San Francisco is seeing rain in
six weeks.
The
heaviest part of the rain is expected to occur Sunday. The National Weather
Service issued a heavy-rain, high wind-gust and flash-food warning for the
region through Monday.
Urban areas
could see up to four inches of moisture, while some counties could see 10
inches through Sunday.
It would
take 150 percent of the average rainfall for California to recover from the dry
period, state water officials say. The state would like to see more snow than
rain because snowpack supplies about a third of the water needed by residents,
agriculture and industry.
About 26
miles west of Seattle, an overflowing river inundated at least a half dozen
homes on the Olympic Peninsula. Rescuers went door to door in Brinnon to check
homes on a road partially blocked by a mudslide, Jefferson County Emergency
Management spokeswoman Keppie Keplinger said.
Three people were rescued from a flooded pickup truck Friday morning, but none was injured, she said.
Three people were rescued from a flooded pickup truck Friday morning, but none was injured, she said.
Threat of landslides
The
threat of landslides will persist into the weekend, and weather officials warn
of flooding in several rivers in western Washington. Oregon also saw flooding
on roadways.
In
the Sierra Nevada spanning California and Nevada, strong winds blinded drivers,
causing multiple car crashes. The wind snapped massive trees, closed ski
resorts around Lake Tahoe and knocked out power to thousands. A 215 km/h gust
recorded early Friday near the Mount Rose Ski Resort southeast of Reno led the
facility and two others to close.
At
least a dozen people were hurt in multiple crashes on Nevada highways. No
deaths were reported, but nine people were hospitalized in a crash on a stretch
of U.S. Highway 95A that involved at least eight vehicles. Three other people
were hospitalized with minor injuries after five cars crashed on U.S. 395 north
of Reno near the California line.
In
the San Francisco Bay Area, power lines were snapped by falling trees and the
wind ripped through freeway and street signs. More than 60,000 people lost
power. By Friday evening, 9,000 customers remained without power, Pacific Gas
& Electric said.
North
of San Francisco, businesses in Marin, Napa, Solano, and Sonoma counties
stacked sandbags to prepare for possible flash flooding from swollen waterways
as rain started falling in the North Bay.
San
Francisco International Airport saw delays of up to 90 minutes and about 175
flights cancelled Friday.
The
storm is expected to drop rain through Sunday, and the National Weather Service
issued a heavy-rain, high wind-gust and flash-flood warning for the region
through Monday.
Rain could cause flash flooding
North of San Francisco, businesses in Marin, Napa, Solano, and Sonoma counties stacked sandbags to prepare for possible flash flooding from swollen waterways as rain started falling in the North Bay.
Winds of up to 15 mph were recorded east of the city Friday morning, and the blustery weather knocked down trees and caused power outages, the National Weather Service said.
San
Francisco International Airport saw delays of up to 90 minutes and about 175
flights canceled Friday.