The Californian town of Montecitohome of british prince harry and his wife Meghan Marklewas the subject of an evacuation order on Monday due to fears that ground slides They can bury the houses.
It is expected that Montecitowith about 9,000 inhabitants and a favorite place for celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey y Jennifer Anistonreceive about 200 millimeters of rain in 24 hours, on slopes already inundated by weeks of downpours.
The emergency authorities in the city located 90 minutes from The Angels They were urged to leave the area.
“LEAVE NOW! This is a rapidly evolving situation. Pay close attention to the emergency alertsthe fire department said on its website.
The city with multi-million dollar properties is especially vulnerable to landslides, as it sits at the foot of a Mountain chain which was the scene of a fire five years ago that destroyed hundreds of square kilometers, stripping the slopes of the vegetation that normally holds the ground firm.
An AFP journalist said police checkpoints had been put in place to prevent people from entering the city, with several streets flooded. Residents were leaving the area.
The presenter Ellen DeGeneres posted a video on Twitter of a raging creek. “This is crazy,” she told his followers.
“The creek by our house never flows. It’s probably about nine feet (2.7 meters) high, and it’s going to go up another two feet (more than half a meter).”
It was not clear how many of the town’s residents, who also include Larry David, Gwyneth Paltrow, Katy Perry y Rob LoweThey responded to the order to evacuate.
cyclone parade
The evacuation order Montecito occurred at a time when California It is hit by a series of storms that have already left 12 dead.
Warnings have been issued for several regions of the so-called Golden State that has been suffering from the incessant rainfall in recent weeks.
“Two major torrential rain events and heavy snowfall from the mountains are expected to affect California in quick succession over the next two days in connection with two of the most energetic and moisture-laden cyclones heading directly into California“said the National Weather Service (NWS).
The rains will continue this Tuesday, bathing the dry portion of the south of the state, while the Sierra Nevada mountains could receive up to 1.8 meters of snow.
Governor Gavin Newsom announced a state of emergency last week.
“We believe the worst is yet to come,” Newsom told reporters.
The governor had asked on Sunday for an emergency presidential order for his state, something that Joe Biden approved on Monday, when some 80,000 remained without electricity.
“The cumulative effect of successive torrential rains will lead to further flooding,” the weather service warned.
“This includes rapid rises in water, landslides, and the possibility of large river floods. Land susceptible to and areas close to recent fires will be the most exposed to risk from debris flows and swift currents.”
Although it is not unusual to see heavy rain in California During the winter, the current rainfall comes after an intense drought that parched western USA for more than two decades, which also led to a large increase in forest fires, in quantity and intensity.
Scientists say these drastic weather changeswith more intense rains and droughts, are the product of climate change.
In San Francisco, storms last week left two dead and thousands without power.
AFP