The Pajaro River overflowed after a dam broke. Approximately 10,000 residents are affected. A dam along the Pajaro River in central California broke during severe storms in the US state of California. Residents of surrounding communities had previously been asked to leave their homes. About 10,000 people are affected.
Flood warnings have been in effect in California for days
The US state is once again hit by heavy rain and snow. Tens of thousands of people sometimes had no electricity. At least two people died in connection with the storm, according to the local office of emergency services.
Since January, the often drought-prone US West Coast state has been repeatedly hit by unusually heavy rainfall. In the high elevations of California, on the other hand, an unusual amount of snow has fallen in recent weeks.
The reason for the current heavy rainfall is a meteorological phenomenon called “atmospheric flow”. According to the weather service, this means “a relatively narrow, directed band of moisture-saturated air” that can be up to 500 kilometers wide and 2,000 kilometers long. Such systems carry much of the water vapor out of the tropics.
