Major Storm Hits California, Leaving Over 100,000 Without Power

Angely Mercado
·2 min read
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A vehicle drives past fallen trees along Big Basin Way during the latest atmospheric storm event in Boulder Creek, Calif. Tuesday, March 21, 2023.
A vehicle drives past fallen trees along Big Basin Way during the latest atmospheric storm event in Boulder Creek, Calif. Tuesday, March 21, 2023.

Communities across California are in the dark today and cleaning up debris after another atmospheric river hit the state, bringing strong winds and heavy rain.

Broken branches littered roads and power lines were damaged during a powerful storm on Tuesday. “Numerous reports of downed trees as winds gusted to over 60 mph in many areas!” the National Weather Service’s Bay Area station tweeted today. More than 113,000 customers in California were without power as of Wednesday mid-day, according Poweroutage.us. Pacific Glass & Electric (PG&E), a California utility company, said in a statement that this week’s storm exceeded the company’s expectations. Some parts of the Bay Area experienced 80 mile-per-hour winds, which only worsened the outages, the statement explained. The widespread infrastructural damage could delay repairs, a PG&E spokesperson told CNN.

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A video uploaded to Twitter shows how the strong winds broke a window in a San Francisco high-rise apartment, littering the street below with shards of glass.

Another video uploaded to Twitter shows cars navigating around fallen tree branches.

The damaging winds and heavy precipitation are supposed to subside today across central California, according to a National Weather Service alert. This recent storm system comes just a week after a storm-weary California was inundated by heavy rain and snowfall.

The disruptions across the Golden State have been extensive. A levee holding back the Pajaro River collapsed during a storm earlier this month, forcing thousands of people to evacuate, KQED reported. People in snow-smothered mountains were trapped in their homes, while others were stranded outside of their neighborhoods earlier this March.

Felled trees

Helena Zappelli surveys the damage to her yard and vehicle after a large tree fell over, Tuesday, March 21, 2023, on Humboldt Street in Santa Rosa, California.
Helena Zappelli surveys the damage to her yard and vehicle after a large tree fell over, Tuesday, March 21, 2023, on Humboldt Street in Santa Rosa, California.

Crushed cars

Amber Balog surveys the damage to a friend’s vehicle, Tuesday, March 21, 2023, after a saturated and wind-blown limb fell on Monte Verde Drive in Santa Rosa, Califrnia.
Amber Balog surveys the damage to a friend’s vehicle, Tuesday, March 21, 2023, after a saturated and wind-blown limb fell on Monte Verde Drive in Santa Rosa, Califrnia.

Tree-blocked roads

A tree downed by high winds blocks Webster Street in Oakland, California, Tuesday, March 21, 2023.
A tree downed by high winds blocks Webster Street in Oakland, California, Tuesday, March 21, 2023.

It does rain in Southern California

Rain falls on a pedestrian on the University of Southern California campus on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, in Los Angeles.
Rain falls on a pedestrian on the University of Southern California campus on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, in Los Angeles.

Commuting through the downpour

Rain falls on pedestrians on the University of Southern California campus on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, in Los Angeles.
Rain falls on pedestrians on the University of Southern California campus on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, in Los Angeles.

Heavy rainfall

A pedestrian struggles with her umbrella in high winds and rain on Davis Street in the Embarcardero in San Francisco California, on Tuesday, March 21, 2023.
A pedestrian struggles with her umbrella in high winds and rain on Davis Street in the Embarcardero in San Francisco California, on Tuesday, March 21, 2023.

Feet of snow

Residents stand on the roof of a snow-covered home on March 21, 2023 in South Lake Tahoe, California.
Residents stand on the roof of a snow-covered home on March 21, 2023 in South Lake Tahoe, California.

Huge snowbanks

A man walks his dog on a snow covered street as snow begins to fall on March 21, 2023 in South Lake Tahoe, California.
A man walks his dog on a snow covered street as snow begins to fall on March 21, 2023 in South Lake Tahoe, California.

Last week’s erosion

An aerial view of a remaining pool at the edge of a hillside landslide brought on by heavy rains, which caused four ocean view apartment buildings to be evacuated and shuttered due to unstable conditions, on March 16, 2023 in San Clemente, California.
An aerial view of a remaining pool at the edge of a hillside landslide brought on by heavy rains, which caused four ocean view apartment buildings to be evacuated and shuttered due to unstable conditions, on March 16, 2023 in San Clemente, California.

Flooded after breached levee

Patrick Cerruti walks through the flooded Pajaro Coin Laundry on March 14, 2023 in Pajaro, California.
Patrick Cerruti walks through the flooded Pajaro Coin Laundry on March 14, 2023 in Pajaro, California.

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