Tropical Storm Hilary’s center moved into Southern California Sunday evening, bringing strong rain, winds and the potential for catastrophic flooding to the region.
San Diego will face the storm before it moves on to the Los Angeles area, where more than 9 million people are under flash flood warnings.
In Palm Springs, City Manager Scott Stiles has declared a local emergency due to the storm, according to a tweet. Residents have been asked to stay home and avoid driving.
“Due to unprecedented rainfall & flooding of local roadways and at least one swift water rescue, City Manager Scott Stiles has declared a local emergency due to the critically dangerous impacts,” the tweet said.
Southern California has been feeling the storm’s effects since earlier in the day and the rainfall totals have begun to dangerously add up.
“We are not used to this level of precipitation, generally. Certainly not in the middle of summer,” San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria told CNN’s Jim Acosta Sunday afternoon, saying he was worried about potential power outages from the wind as well as flooding. “We’re not built for this kind of rainfall.”
“With what we’re expecting, it may overwhelm us,” he added.
Though the storm is expected to weaken, it will continue lashing the region with severe weather as it moves further into the US.
One California official has warned Hilary could be among the most devastating storms to hit the state in recent years. In Arizona, authorities issued evacuation orders in parts of Lake Mead National Park urging residents to seek higher ground ahead of potential floods. And Nevada’s governor declared a state of emergency Sunday as the storm drew closer.
More than than 1,000 flights within, into or out of the US have been canceled Sunday and more than 4,400 have been delayed. The three most-impacted airports are all in Hilary’s range: Harry Reid International Airport in Nevada, San Diego International Airport and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, according to flightaware.com.
Hilary weakened from a Category 1 hurricane to a tropical storm before it made landfall over the northern Baja California Peninsula early Sunday.
At least one death is already attributed to the storm. A person died when their vehicle was swept away near Santa Rosalía in Mexico, along the Baja California Peninsula, Mexican officials said in a news release Saturday.
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