El Niño could become strongest on record, California Governor Gavin Newsom declares state of emergency | Today’s news
California Governor Gavim Newsom has declared a state of emergency as an El Nino-driven winter storm approaches the United States.
With the announcement, authorities are mobilizing state resources to streamline measures in advance and “help California prepare for this historic event,” according to the governor’s official website.
The emerging El Nino event “is already breaking records, and forecasters expect it to continue to strengthen and potentially become the strongest on record,” Newsom’s office also said.
“California is strongest when we look out for each other. That’s what this event is about. Giving communities the support they need, giving first responders the tools to do their jobs, and giving families confidence that their state is prepared,” Newsom said in a statement.
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A number of U.S. counties have already declared local states of emergency as tropical storms sweep in from the Pacific Ocean toward the southern part of the state, the Los Angeles Times reports.
“California is strongest when we look out for each other. That’s what this event is about,” Newsom said in a statement Monday, also regarding the emergency declaration. “To give communities the support they need, give first responders the tools to do their jobs, and give families confidence that their state is prepared.”
What are the authorities doing as a precaution?
According to California Secretary of Natural Resources Wade Crowfoot, the state is taking steps to protect communities from a “potentially historic El Niño.”
Crowfoot says authorities are cutting red tape and fast-tracking flood protection, as well as the broader preparedness communities need.
“We are mobilizing with our partners to protect people, infrastructure and natural resources before the worst of the storms arrive,” Crowfoot said.
The proclamation directed the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to consult with appropriate state agencies to expand accessible and multilingual public preparedness communications related to severe weather, flooding, emergency alerts, evacuation preparedness, power outages and more.
Newsom also declared a state of emergency in Santa Barbara and other counties recently hit by the storms.
Homes in south Orange County as well as Malin were damaged by flooding, the LA Times reports. It also said that the coast from Carlsbad to Long Beach had been eroded by the flood.
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What is El Nino?
El Nino is a periodic warming of the ocean surface temperature in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The western Pacific is usually warmer than the eastern region, but during El Nino this pattern reverses. As the eastern Pacific warms significantly, it changes circulation and precipitation patterns around the world.
El Nino often produces intense storms over California, which falls into the eastern Pacific. These storms can lead to dangerous landslides, flooding, debris flows, erosion, and similar other impacts.
