As rain pummeled Southern California on Monday night, flooding occurred in areas of Los Angeles County, an unexpected occurrence in a generally dry, sunny region where many are concerned about droughts.
A flash flood warning was issued for southern Los Angeles County shortly before 7 p.m. expired on Tuesday morning. The warning touched approximately 8 million of the county's more than 10 million citizens, making it the most populated in the country.
Heavy Rains Lash Los Angeles as Evacuations Are Ordered
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In the early hours of Tuesday morning, the entire extent of flooding in the Los Angeles area was not immediately known, as per The New York Times.
The Central Coast of California, where officials ordered evacuations in a coastal enclave of Santa Barbara County on Monday, seemed to be the most damaged part of a state hammered in recent weeks by intense surges of moisture known as atmospheric rivers.
However, the National Weather Service warned on Monday evening that flash floods will occur in downtown Los Angeles, Malibu, Hollywood, and Beverly Hills.
Early photographs showed automobiles partially submerged by flooding near downtown as more than an inch of rain poured in some regions of the county that night.
The Los Angeles Fire Department also notified an NBC station that rescuers had rescued two persons who were trapped inside a vehicle at the bottom of a sinkhole that had broken up in the Chatsworth neighborhood, north of downtown Los Angeles.
A so-called ground halt was ordered just after 8 p.m. at Los Angeles International Airport. The Federal Aviation Administration postponed takeoffs and landings for roughly an hour due to heavy winds, according to Victoria Spilabotte, an airport spokesperson.
"That happens at airports all around the country, but we don't typically have a ground stop, mostly because Los Angeles has relatively nice weather all year," she explained.
More inclement weather was predicted. The Weather Service said early Tuesday morning that as the severe rains in Southern California began to subside, a fresh and "energetic" low-pressure system was forming offshore.
Heavy rain was anticipated throughout most of the state on Tuesday, with sections of Southern California receiving up to seven inches of rain over the following several days, according to the National Weather Service.
"The recent big rains have provided respite from the severe drought that has plagued wide sections of the West," it continued.
The floods in Los Angeles on Monday night capped a tense day in Santa Barbara County, where officials urged thousands of people to flee the coastal enclave of Montecito due to mudslides in a location where wildfires have left soils and plants less stable.
Search Continues For Child Swept Away, Multiple Rescues Carried Out
First responders are attempting to reach around 400 people and 70 horses who have been shut off by mud and debris obstructing a Santa Barbara County route, as per The Weather Channel. The goal is to escort them out as soon as the roads are clear. There have been no reports of injuries or anyone in need of medical attention.
In a phone call this afternoon, sheriff's spokesperson Tony Cipolla stated that searchers in San Luis Obispo County are still seeking for a youngster who was carried away by high floodwaters on Monday.
Kyle Doan, age 5, was recognized in an earlier press release. He was last seen wearing a black puffer jacket with a red line, blue trousers, and blue and gray Nike tennis shoes. He is 4 feet tall and weighs 52 pounds.
Extreme weather prompted the search to be called off after many hours yesterday. According to statistics recorded by The Weather Channel, at least 16 deaths have been blamed on a series of storms that have hammered California in recent weeks.
Floodwaters have washed away people, imprisoned them in automobiles, and killed them via fallen trees. A falling tree also killed one person in Washington State on Monday.
All evacuation and shelter-in-place orders have been lifted in Santa Barbara, both city and county. This includes the Montecito neighborhood. Flooding and debris may be present in certain regions, according to officials, and obstructed roads may prevent residents from leaving or returning to their homes.
