Another severe winter storm hits California, forcing evacuations

A damaged pier in Capitola, California.
(Image credit: Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images)

A powerful winter storm is bringing heavy rains to California, forcing the evacuation of Montecito five years to the day after mudslides swept through the town, killing 23 people and destroying 130 houses.

The atmospheric river is "draped along the central coast," UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain told the Los Angeles Times, with downpours happening from Monterey County to Santa Barbara County. In less than 12 hours, Montecito has received "more than 8 inches of rain, with 7 to 8 inches still forecast to fall," Montecito Fire Chief Kevin Taylor told reporters on Monday afternoon. The decision to order evacuations came as creeks in Montecito started to overflow and several roads flooded.

Subscribe to The Week

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

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

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
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.