Some of the highest amounts of rainfall in years was brought by a storm in Azusa, California. The

A major problem in Southern California is that Los Angeles experiences very little rain all year, followed by intense downpours that last less than one day (53). Its unreliable rainfall severely hurts the region. In Northern California, mountains such as the Sierra Nevada allow for a huge range in rainfall over a short distance. “…a place on the western slope of the range may receive eighty or so inches of precipitation in a year, while a place on the east slope, fifty miles away, may receive ten inches or less” (58).

After more than five years of drought in California, we are just now beginning to see an above-average precipitation,and this is leaving many to ask, "is the drought over?" This last drought was one of the worsts droughts California has experienced in history and it left many panicked and trying to come up with solutions. “Governor Jerry Brown even made one of the first cutback to farmers ' water rights since 1977, and ordered cities and towns to cut water use by as much as 36 percent ” (Zamora,et al..) Overall California has 39 million residents and on top of that California also grows an unbelievable amount of

In sunny California one thing you do not expect to see is cold gloomy weather, yet for about four consecutive days Chino Hills saw enough rain to make the dry hills of Chino Hills green again. Chino Hills faced harsh rainstorms with even some random appearances of hail. How did this effect school? Students still had to go to class and continue their daily schedule, but places like the parking lot saw severe flooding. Many cars looked like boats or submarines, as they were more than wheel deep in rainwater. Roads also faced the harshness of the rain as they were damaged with potholes and cracks that seemed to grow every rainy day. Traffic became heavier and would sometimes seem to take twice as long to get to a destination. However, this rain

California is known for its vast production of agriculture; having some of the most fertile soil on Earth, a 4-year drought is not what California wants. The lack of water in California has had dramatic effects within the state. In fact California’s governor, Jerry Brown, has declared it a state of emergency. A drought is a serious weather condition in which many people and the environment is entirely affected. A drought is essentially a difference in the amount of water in a region and the amount of water that the people and the environment in that region needs (Mann et al. 2015). The definition of a drought varies throughout regions depending on the amount of water each region receives and needs. The time limit to announce a drought also

California is currently breaking the state record for longest ongoing drought, now entering it’s fourth year. This drought has taken over 98% of the state. Out of that large percentage, over 44% is in “exceptional” drought, which is the worst level of drought. There’s uncertainty about how long this drought will continue into the future and how severe the problem will become.

On Sunday morning, October 20, 1991 the five acre fire re-ignited shortly before 11:00 am. Again, this fire began as a small brush fire that soon rapidly spread southwest. The fire conditions were much worse this time around. The origin of the fire was on a steep hillside in what some have called a box canyon above state Highway 24 near the entrance to the Caldecott Tunnel. This is a wooded area with heavy underbrush, narrow streets, and steep terrain. The unusual weather conditions are described in FEMA's Hazard Mitigation Report as follows: "...an unusual east wind, at speeds in excess of 65 miles per hour, that raced down from the crest of the Oakland-Berkeley Hills. Coupled with record high temperatures well into the nineties, the hot, dry winds gusted and swirled through five years of drought-dry brush and groves of freeze-damaged Monterey pines and eucalyptus trees. All the conditions for a major disaster were present that morning of October 20, 1991." With wind speeds gusting at about 65 miles per hour, the houses nearby were quickly in harm’s way. These winds are currently known as the “diablo winds” but are similar to the Santa

Currently, California is fighting against gusty winds and dry conditions which are causing fires in Northern California to grow rapidly. This blaze has burn northeast of Middletown and Hidden Valley Lake. The Rocky and Napa fires are 2 of 16 wildfires burning in California,

California is currently battling a massive water shortage that is crippling the state. The lack of a rainy season for the last four years is really putting a strain on the local farmers, citizens, and communities. California typically has a Mediterranean type climate where it has a concentrated rainy season for six months and then plunges into high temperatures of dry heat. This has not been the typical pattern the last few years. California has received very little rain and is now searching for ways to conserve and produce water. Scientists believe that there is “blocking ridge” that is caused by high atmospheric pressure that causes disruption of typical wind patterns that blow storms to the California coast. The ridge extends from the subtropical Pacific between California and Hawaii to the coast of Arctic Ocean north of Alaska. California is now looking for ways to conserve water by focusing on water conservation and relandscaping public areas with drought resistant and native plants.

The Cedar Fire (2003) was one of the largest and deadliest wildland fires in California history burning nearly 300,000 acres in San Diego County and killing 15, including 1 firefighter. A lost hiker accidently set this fire from survival methods attempted with a flare. It resulted in evacuations of thousands of San Diego residents and destroyed approximately 2400 homes (CALFIRE, 2016). The

The debris from this would choke up rivers which lowered the amount of water going down through them and forced water and sediment into lowland flood plains (an area of low-lying ground adjacent to a river, formed mainly of river sediments and subject to flooding.)(Floods, Droughts, and Lawsuits: A Brief History of California Water Policy). This caused annual spring flooding. Farmers, because of the low water supply would rely on some water diverted from River and spring flooding to water there crops but with California's rising population and growing global demands for food they will have to find new ways to water there crops (Floods, Droughts, and Lawsuits: A Brief History of California Water Policy). How long will California's drought last this

California is currently experiencing the worst drought in history and its not only affecting California – its affecting everyone. The California drought has become a slow movie disaster. You don’t realize how bad it is, until it hits you hard.

The fire’s ravaging California’s wine country since Sunday night continued to burn out of control Tuesday. The toll reached 15 confirmed dead, hundreds hospitalized, and an estimated 2,000 buildings damaged or destroyed. State and local officials warn that many are still missing and unaccounted for, some areas are still out of reach of emergency crews, and these numbers are likely to rise. The two biggests fires causing the most destruction consumed more than 52,000 acres in Napa and Sonoma Counties. 50 miles per hour winds were threatening cities including Santa Rosa, Napa, and Calistoga. Winds died down on Tuesday, but are forecasted to pick up again later in the week. About 20,000 people were asked to evacuate, and were seen fleeing by car

The response to this statewide disaster requires the combined efforts of all state agencies and the state's model mutual aid system to address. In support of this unified effort, all state agencies with a role in supporting drought mitigation and relief efforts are organized under the Incident Command System and will continue provide emergency planning, response, and mitigation support as long as needs exist and hopefully this need will not be a need for very much longer. The Task Force is currently coordinating with other relevant national and international efforts including the emerging National Multi-Model Ensemble and the international effort to develop a Global Drought Information System and a subgroup of the NOAA Drought Task Force recently released a science assessment looking at the relationship between El Niño and the California drought which states that the impacts of El Niño on California winter precipitation are likely to be greater in late winter than in early winter; southern California has a stronger chance of wet conditions than northern California; and, in case of a very strong El Niño, heavy precipitation is more likely across the entire state. This is a positive sign for Californians everywhere, especially in the Valley as we rely heavily on rain and snow for our

Have you noticed the amount of natural disasters that have occurred lately? Recently, natural disasters have been happening such as hurricane Harvey, Irma, and the 7.1 magnitude earthquake Mexico experienced. Sadly, California could be next to be hit from an earthquake.

Climate change has been linked to increased extreme weather events such as; Hurricanes, tornadoes, torrential rains, flooding, and drought. These are all very debilitating to the communities they ravage through. The impact of California’s drought on the economy has cost the state about 603 million, with 4,700 job losses and a 550 million bill directly dealing with drought related cost. Tornadoes and severe thunderstorms