Heavy rains expected in the southwest of America due to Hurricane Hilary, government issues alert
Hurricane Hilary is expected to cause severe flooding in the southwestern US and parts of California. ‘The Hurricane could bring more than a year’s worth of rain to parts of California, Nevada and Arizona’, CNN reported. Heavy flooding is expected in parts of California. Hilary, a powerful Category 4 hurricane, made landfall about 360 miles south of Cabo San Lucas in Mexico Friday afternoon with strong winds, Xinhua news agency quoted the National Hurricane Center as saying. Along with this strong winds were running at a speed of 145 mph.
The watch issued on Friday indicated that tropical storm conditions – including rough seas, heavy rain and winds of up to 117 kilometers per hour (73 mph) – were expected within the next two days.
According to the National Hurricane Center (NHC), Hurricane Hilary is intensifying in the Pacific Ocean southwest of Mexico and is expected to flood parts of the US Southwest with potentially heavy rain. Category 4 Hurricane Hillary headed toward Mexico’s Baja California peninsula on Friday, a US government agency said.
Parts of Southern California were placed under a tropical storm watch for the first time on Friday. USA Today quoted forecasters as saying it could cause widespread flooding. The Hurricane Center said it expected Hurricane Hilary “to approach the west coast of the Baja California peninsula on Saturday night.” But it will weaken into a tropical storm before hitting Southern California on Sunday afternoon.
The news that Hurricane Hilary is headed for Southern California has brought back memories of Tropical Storm “El Cordonazo” that hit the state some 84 years ago. According to NBC News, “El Cordonazo”, which hit Long Beach in September 1939, is the last recorded tropical storm in California.
