The multi-day rainstorm that has drenched Southern California is expected to taper off tonight, but Los Angeles city officials and weather experts warn residents to remain on guard, noting that hazards such as mudslides can still occur due to oversaturated ground.
They’re also encouraging Angelenos to use the city’s 311 nonemergency system to request services like repairing potholes or clearing storm drains as the city starts to transition out of emergency mode to the recovery phase of its response.
“Even though the rain looks like it might be stopping or at least (is) a little lighter … Angelenos, we still need to continue to take precautions and to stay informed,” Mayor Karen Bass said during a morning news conference on Tuesday, Feb. 6.
Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said that while surveying some of the worst mudslides on Monday, she was reminded of “the pure force and magnitude with which a hillside can suddenly come down” and urged people to avoid traveling through hillside areas, and for those living in hilly areas to heed any evacuation orders if issued.
So far, five buildings have been red-tagged as unsafe to go inside and seven others yellow-tagged, meaning residents can only go inside to retrieve possessions, but can’t stay there, Crowley said. The city had logged 307 incidents of mudslides, 35 of which damaged buildings that required inspection, Crowley said.
The evacuation order for La Tuna Canyon residents, issued on Sunday, remains in effect.
Ariel Cohen, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the area recorded its third wettest two-day stretch since record keeping began in the 1870s, and it was remarkable that no fatalities were directly related to the storm.
He, like the mayor and other city officials, warned Angelenos not to let their guard down, though.
“We still have light to moderate rain ongoing across the greater L.A. area and because the soils are so saturated – super-saturated in fact…
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