California’s calm, dry spell is about to reverse, and the ocean is going to get dramatic in the process. A series of storms linked to a strengthening El Nino will sweep across the state over the next week, bringing widespread rain, snow to the Sierra Nevada and coastal surf that could reach 40 feet or more near San Francisco and reach 60 feet at the Mavericks surf spot, according to the New York Times. Most of the rain will fall in Northern California, where forecasts call for up to 6 inches; the Bay Area could see around 2 inches, while Los Angeles appears to see less than 1 inch.
If the giant waves hit at high tide, it could exacerbate things, says UC Santa Cruz coastal scientist Gary Griggs. “There is absolutely nothing we can do to hold back the Pacific Ocean,” he told the newspaper. Chronicle of San Francisco. Experts say the risk of flooding is low and storms will help fill reservoirs and mitigate wildfire risk, but they warn of slippery travel, gusts of wind snapping dry tree branches, perilous mountain trips and beach conditions best monitored via webcam, not up close, according to the Times. “People should log on to their computers,” says Brian Garcia, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “They shouldn’t go down near (the water) at all.”
So how strong will this El Niño be? The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center said in a Thursday memo that the storm system will likely continue to develop through the end of 2026 and that by early next year there is a good chance it could “(surpass) the strength of all events since 1950,” according to SFGate. “This is not a normal El Nino,” said Daniel Rudnick, an oceanographer at the University of San Diego. THE Los Angeles Timesmeanwhile, enters the debate over the severity of the storm system.
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