State of Emergency Declared by Sheriff Honsal in Response to Recent Flooding, Storms

Saturated hillsides and standing water in the valleys across the north coast as the aftermath of last weekends’ storm and floods is still being felt– as more rain and snow falls today and is forecast for the coming week. Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal declared a State of Emergency for the area in response to flooding across the area over the weekend, citing the main stem flooding of Mad River as well as the flooding of other streams and creeks

I’m here near Berry Summit on the 299 where we’re seeing just nasty conditions, slick roads, heavy gusts of wind. snow at higher elevations, some sleet coming down right now. So let’s take a look at where this weather is coming from and what are the causes of it. 

Another atmospheric river is upon us– strong winds can create narrow bands of pressure, moving condensed water vapor in the atmosphere, in our case, over the pacific and inland.   as that water vapor rises and cools, it creates heavy precipitation rain, and in cold areas, even snow.

This leads to wet roads everywhere, icy at higher elevations, snowy some places as well.  Tomorrow, Wednesday is going to be the best day for driving so if you have any errands you have to run that require a bit of a drive, it’s just going to get worse as the week goes on into the weekend. Drivers are cautioned to be on the lookout for mudslides, which are a common occurrence after heavy, prolonged rainfall– especially in areas recently affected by wildfires, which caused the mudslide on the 199 freeway. In areas with fresh, heavy snowfall, even avalanches area a concern as a dense or very light snowpack before heavy snow can raise the risk.