Hilary moves toward northwestern US with threat of heavy rains, winds
Los Angeles, USA, Aug 21 (EFE).- Storm Hilary, downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone, was heading Monday toward the northwestern United States, the US National Weather Service said.
The storm is threatening to dump large amounts of rain in Nevada as it did in California on Sunday.
The NWS warned Monday that Hilary still has the potential for major disruptions as it moves north through the Intermountain West region, located between the Cascades, Sierra Nevada and the Rocky Mountains.
Persistent rain and thunderstorms could cause flash flooding across much of Nevada and the northern Great Basin.
An excessive rainfall warning also remains in effect as far northwest as Montana.
The NWS forecast strong winds and gusts up to 120 kilometers (75 miles) per hour from Nevada to southern Idaho.
Clark County in Nevada, where Las Vegas is located, declared a state of emergency in preparation for the storm.
Hilary reached US territory on Sunday afternoon, causing massive rainfall especially in San Diego, the Coachella Valley and Palm Springs.
Interstate 10, which crosses the country from east to west, has been closed in California due to floods.
In Los Angeles, authorities have asked the community to stay away from the city’s main river and its drains, with floods leaving vehicles stranded in the middle of the city’s streets.
Although Hilary arrived in California weakened as a tropical storm, it dropped more than half of the average annual rainfall in some areas.
San Bernardino County saw 34 centimeters and Riverside County accumulated 29 centimeters. In Los Angeles County, records were broken with 17 centimeters of accumulated water in Leona Valley.
Record rainfall of 5.8 centimeters was set in downtown Los Angeles, breaking the previous record of 4.3 centimeters set in 1977 during Cyclone Doreen, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
In California, classes were suspended Monday in most districts in the southern part of the state, including Los Angeles. They are expected to resume on Tuesday.
The governor of California, Democrat Gavin Newsom, who had declared a state of emergency for the southern counties of the state in anticipation of Hilary’s arrival and deployed 7,500 National Guard troops, plans to deliver an assessment of the impact by late Monday afternoon.
The phenomenon emerged on Wednesday as a tropical storm and became a category four hurricane.
In Baja California, Mexico, the storm caused one death, after a driver traveling with his family drowned after being swept away by the floodwaters. EFE
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