Rachel weakens to a post-tropical storm after a weekend of flooding, pounding surf and crashes across San Diego County
The National Weather Service downgraded the storm Sunday after it lashed San Diego County with 5-to-8-foot surf, more than 2 inches of overnight rain in some coastal cities, and dozens of freeway crashes. Forecasters say a record El Nino winter could make Rachel a preview.
SAN DIEGO: The National Weather Service said Sunday that Tropical Storm Rachel had weakened into a post-tropical storm after causing flooding and damage in Southern California over the weekend, before pushing inland across the desert Southwest. The storm made landfall in northern Baja California, north of Ensenada, on Saturday night, and the National Weather Service classified it as post-tropical on Sunday.
The storm put San Diego County under only its second tropical storm watch since such alerts began in 2023. The first came with Hurricane Hilary that year.
In San Diego County, waves of 5 to 8 feet combined with high tides to bring coastal flooding and beach erosion, and lifeguards told people to stay off the beaches Sunday, KOGO reported. A coastal flood warning covered coastal San Diego County until late Sunday afternoon, a flood advisory was issued for the San Diego River in the Fashion Valley area, and a flood watch covered the entire county all weekend. A wind advisory for the mountains and deserts ran until 5 a.m. Monday, with winds of 30 to 40 mph and gusts possible to 60 mph.
Overnight rainfall totals as of Sunday morning ranged from more than 2 inches in some coastal cities to 3 inches in the mountains, according to KOGO. Dozens of crashes were reported on freeways and surface streets late Saturday and into early Sunday as heavy bands of rain moved through the county, and some small scattered power outages were reported.
Flash flood threat inland
Flash flood warnings covered parts of San Diego, Riverside and Imperial counties, including El Cajon and Santee. Daniel Swain, a UC climate scientist, warned on social media of "a serious flash flood threat" in the area, saying showers on the eastern side of Rachel could bring one to two years of desert rainfall.
Coastal water levels were already running as much as 1.5 feet above predictions in some areas, the National Hurricane Center said, as a strong El Nino and a Kelvin wave from Peru raised background sea levels by about 6 to 12 inches. Jonathan Warrick, a U.S. Geological Survey geologist, called the combination of tides, waves and a Kelvin wave "unprecedented."
City crews spent Saturday clearing debris from drainage channels in Sorrento Valley and Southcrest, areas hit by the January 2024 floods. Mayor Todd Gloria told NBC 7: "The city's storm channel system was built for a bygone era."
A preview of the winter ahead
Forecasters warned that Rachel could be a preview of what is coming for California over the next several months. They expect this winter to usher in the strongest El Nino weather pattern on record, bringing hotter-than-average ocean temperatures and, with it, likely record rainfall, explosive surf and mudslides well into next year.
Last month, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an emergency proclamation, releasing money and other resources so the state could start preparing to protect critical infrastructure. "That means getting flood-fighting supplies into position, bolstering our water infrastructure, and helping communities across the Golden State prepare," Newsom said in a statement following the proclamation. The state said it is pre-positioning more than 4 million sandbags, more than 50,000 feet of portable flood barriers and 400,000 tons of rock to repair levees.
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