California's Drought

Here's another good one:

https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/17/us/camp-fire-garbageman/index.html

"Only the Brave" is on tonight. It's the movie about the Granite Mountain Hot Shots firefighters who died in the Yarnell, AZ fire. Horrible fire scenes.

Looks reminiscent of Beijing, China, but it's not. San Francisco photos of the smoke.  One is the Bay Bridge, I believe.  The other is SF.

@sanderson wrote:"Only the Brave" is on tonight.  It's the movie about the Granite Mountain Hot Shots firefighters who died in the Yarnell, AZ fire.  Horrible fire scenes.

No way I could watch that one. I'm fighting back tears just writing this.  

(Camp Fire death toll is now in the 70s.  )

It's raining in most parts of California with a dusting of snow at high elevations. Normally, I think of water when it rains, but the air has been so bad with the Woolsey southern fire and the Camp northern fire, that this rain is cleaning the air. To take a deep breath of moist, cool, clean air is a blessing.

The rain has a down side in that it makes recovery hard in the north, and mud slides are possible in both ends of CA. For the few thousand who lost their homes and those still waiting to see if their friends and loved ones are alive, we grieve.

It's a mixed blessing. Seems that rain follows disasters. I remember after the Loma Prieto earthquake struck it rained too, soaking all those poor survivors. I really feel for those poor soles who have been displaced by those catastrophic fires. I hesitate to ask "what's next"?

What has been happening in California is horrible. My heart goes out to all who have been impacted.

Hi Yardslave and others in California, I can't even imagine what some have gone through. I am just wondering is their some kind of plan to lessen the frequency and or the severity of these wildfires. I know many try do create fire breaks around their homes but with the winds that are generated this seems just a tiny step. Has the Forrest Service or the State advocated anything? I would like to advocate a national water pipeline, similar to the interstate highway system to move a natural resource that is abundant in one area to an area where it is scarce plus if it leaks, the leaks will be easy to find, the weeds will be taller. We have had a surplus of over 12" this year, I know we are a small state but I am willing to share.

Water prices/value will dictate the feasibility of an interstate water system. Our country's investing in a united water system, or infrastructure, will only be feasible if there is a demand that meets a price point. That's how our interstate highway system's funding was justified. It may ultimately be cheaper to tap into the Pacific Ocean than to involve the other states.

Update on the northern Camp Fire: 84 civilian casualties, 14,000 residences and 500+ commercial buildings.

CA actually does not have a water shortage as much as it has water mis-management. The northern part gets lots of rain that could be shared with the Valley. Something like (off the top of my head) 82% goes out the SF Bay to the ocean. Lack of storage facilities, cutting off or reducing water allotments to Valley farmers, and wrong priorities all contribute.

Inter-state water lines would be OM goodness $$. In Portland, OR, I was astounded by the amount of water the Columbia River dumps into the ocean. Building mega pipelines from the Columbia River to Shasta Lake in northern CA would be an engineering feat. It would then flow south to the midpoint (SF - Sacramento) where it would then have to be pumped up again as the elevation into the southern Valley slowly rises. Fresno is about 200 feet above sea level.

Dan in CT - have you read through this thread on CA drought?

And, now the mud slides began. Mud slides reported in the northern Camp Fire area and the southern Woolsey (Malibu / Ojai) Fire.

Did the mudslides happen, sanderson?

Yes. Some precautionary mandatory evacuations but I haven't heard of any fatalities or homes washed off their foundations. The majority of the rain is after Christmas.

Still to come, then.

Fresno has received a season total (since Oct 2018) of 5". The rain gauge in my backyard as of 2-2-19 for this current rain.

How much rain (or snow) have the rest of you Californians received? The air is so clean!

Our season to date as of Sunday, 2-6-19, in Pasadena is 21.68 inches!!!!!!!!!!!
We are usually at 10 inches on an average rainy season, excluding a drought year.
Most of the rain has come since last Thursday.  I wish I had more rain barrels.  I'm going to have a beautiful garden this year!
R
As I write this, it is still raining.  Yippee!

Happy Rose!

SO glad to hear it, Rose!

Soft hail an hour ago! Why do I get so excited about a little bit of frozen water, be it hail or snow? Because it is such a rare occurrence here!

I know how you feel, sanderson.  Water is so precious when you do not have enough of it.  It brings life.

@sanderson wrote:Soft hail an hour ago!    Why do I get so excited about a little bit of frozen water, be it hail or snow?  Because it is such a rare occurrence here!

I know how you feel, S. We have a chance of snow tonight, and a few more times in the next few days. Fingers crossed. I will definitely post pics if we get any white stuff.

For the first time in almost 10 years . . .


THE CALIFORNIA DROUGHT IS OFFICIALLY OVER!



https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?CA

Yes, in fact, it is so over that crops are being ruined by excessive rain. Cherries and hay drying in the fields have been ruined. I belong to an Ag group and get the latest news.

So that pendulum is now swinging the other way... Hopefully it will even out quickly & return Cali to a lush state!

@sanderson wrote:Yes, in fact, it is so over that crops are being ruined by excessive rain.  Cherries and hay drying in the fields have been ruined.    I belong to an Ag group and get the latest news.  

Farmers' Markets are hurting, too. There's just no produce to be had. At least the bugs are thriving.