Storm print

The storm from last week left its mark on our city. In the picture above, you can see the big tree that was uprooted in Rio San Gabriel Park.

And, despite sewer drains all throughout the city, the water couldn't drain fast enough. On my way home from work last Friday, I was surprised to notice my phone navigation app warned me of a "flood" up ahead as I was exiting the 605 freeway. And, sure enough, it was flooded and completely overrunning the curb halfway across the street. I will say I drove more slowly than normal that night. It was a scary drive home.

"The wise man in the storm prays to God, not for safety from danger, but deliverance from fear." 
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

This crazy storm!

In California, we have earthquakes for excitement. We rarely get (or are prepared for) "Weather" with a capital "W." But today we've seen what many are calling the worst storm in years. High winds have knocked down branches and even trees, and have left many without power. Streets and freeways are flooded.

Thankfully, all this rain continues to improve our current drought conditions. But even so, californiadrought.org reports that there are no quick fixes: "Despite these improvements, drought impacts on overdrafted groundwater basins, forests, and aquatic species in California are long term and will take multiple above-average precipitation years to be resolved."

Never enter the riverbed

On a typical weekend day, the Rio San Gabriel riverbed is teeming with people—bikers, skateboarders, motorcyclists, even horseback riders.

But we had a bit of rain last night, with more expected in the next couple of days. And the strongly worded warning sign at the entrance (OK, covered with graffiti but still legible) made me stop and think—just how likely, really, is a flash flood? After all, the sky is blue, with hardly a cloud in sight.

Flash flooding occurs when it rains rapidly on saturated soil or dry soil that has poor absorption ability. Many people tend to underestimate the dangers of flash floods. What makes flash floods most dangerous is their sudden nature and fast-moving water. And the source of the water might be a storm that occurs miles away. [Wikipedia]

So for today, anyway, unlike those two bicyclists in the picture, I stayed away from the floor of the riverbed.

Just in case.