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Alongside earthquake: historic tropical storm hits California

11:00
21 August 2023

Alongside earthquake
Historic tropical storm hits California

Earthquake and rain mapA 5.1 magnitude earthquake Sunday evening accompanied the impact of Tropical Storm Hilary for Los Angeles, California.

California felt the impact of a rare tropical storm this weekend, alongside the arrival of a 5.1 magnitude earthquake close to Los Angeles.

Hurricane Hilary lost momentum before making landfall in the U.S. but is still delivering torrential rainfall and strong winds in California and Nevada.

More than 25 million people are subject to flood warnings across the southwestern states, from California to Idaho. The system is expected to travel towards Idaho throughout Monday, where it will dissipate.

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Flooding and severe weather conditions were felt over the weekend. We have footage from our reporter in California showing the treacherous driving conditions in the video above.

Up to 10 inches of intense rainfall is expected today in regions not accustomed to, or capable of, seeing so much rain. The largely deserted landscapes in the southwest U.S. cannot absorb water well, resulting in flash floods.

Daily rainfall records were broken in many areas on Sunday:

LocationNew record (old record)
Palmdale2.95 inches (0.05 inches in 1934)
Lancaster2.72 inches (most since records began)
Long Beach1.56 inches (most since 2002)
Los Angeles - Downtown1.53 inches (0.03 inches 1906)

In addition to Tropical Storm Hilary, a 5.1 magnitude earthquake was felt west of Los Angeles on Sunday in Ojai. No damage was reported in the aftermath, with most people busy preparing for their first tropical storm since 1939.

While flooding is by far the biggest hazard from Hilary, there have been some very gusty winds in Southern California, especially in the mountains, where gusts upwards of 70 mph have been measured.

In Baja California, Mexico at least one person was killed by the storm as it passed and caused major flooding in the state.

Historic rainfall from Hurricane Hilaryread more

We will keep you updated on the situation as Hilary continues travelling in-land.

Ryan Hathaway
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