Northern California towns under evacuation warnings after historic rainfall

Several Northern California towns were placed under evacuation warnings on Sunday after a New Year's Eve storm brought an "atmospheric river" that drenched the region with rain and dumped heavy snowfall in some areas, reports The Associated Press.

The town of Wilton was under a shelter-in-place order due to the threat of an "imminent levee failure." Residents of the low-lying communities of Point Pleasant, Glanville Tract, and Franklin Pond were told to be ready to leave. At least two people have died from the storm which has left over 100,000 homes and businesses without power, per CNN.

Flooding closed major highways. Mountainous regions above 5,000 feet also received between 20 to 45 inches of snow. San Francisco got its second rainiest day since 1849, with 5.46 inches of rain in 24 hours. That was just under the record of 5.54 inches set Nov. 5, 1994.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up