Good morning. It’s Wednesday, Jan. 11.
- More Pacific storms poised to hit soaked state.
- Governor pledges millions to clear encampments.
- And 10 places begging to be explored in 2023.
California storms
1.
More storms are coming.
Meteorologists said Northern California would see rain today into Thursday, then get a break before another stronger system sweeps across the entire state this weekend. The forecast comes as dazed residents have only begun to dig out from a powerful early-week storm that swamped towns with mud and water, cut power to more than 150,000 customers, closed hundreds of schools, and forced mass evacuations in Santa Barbara, Monterey, and Santa Cruz counties. The confirmed death toll from California’s two-week storm siege, which grew by four on Monday and Tuesday, now stands at 17. Accuweather | Weather Channel | A.P.
2.
Other developments:
- Rescuers resumed their search Tuesday for a 5-year-old boy who was swept away by floodwaters in Paso Robles a day earlier. The father recalled the last thing the boy said: “Мy wife told me that my son said, ‘Don’t worry, Mommy.'” N.Y. Times | Paso Robles Press
- The entire community of Planada, just east of Merced, was evacuated after the streets were completely submerged Tuesday. “The water was going down our street with a current, you could see waves,” said Esela Torrez, 24. Merced Sun-Star | L.A. Times
- California’s storm, in photos and video:
- Watsonville, submerged. @WeatherNation
- A tree falls in the Santa Cruz Mountains. @PGE_Mayra
- Street kayaking in Santa Barbara. @KevinForBOS
- Whiskeytown Lake spills into “Glory Hole.” Record Searchlight
- A rockslide along Route 168 in Fresno County. @ChpFresno
- Flooded Union Station in Los Angeles. @CarloDLC
- San Francisco’s Sutro Tower struck by lightning. KTVU
3.
The area of California gripped by “severe drought” or worse has fallen by 23 percentage points since October.
The state’s five largest reservoirs have cumulatively added more than 1.6 million acre feet of water in the last month, a 41% surge.
And the Sierra snowpack is now more than double the average size for this time of year.
So can we start talking about the end of the drought? Two perspectives:
- Marty Ralph, a research meteorologist at UC San Diego, said drought is “a bit in the eye of the beholder.” While recent storms may green the landscape, crucial water sources remain several wet years away from replenishment, including the Colorado River and Central Valley aquifers. “It’s a long road ahead,” he said. Fox Weather
- Noah Diffenbaugh, a climate scientist at Stanford, compared the drought to long-term personal debt: “Most people wouldn’t say the problem’s been solved because of one normal monthly paycheck. A normal year of rainfall would not break the drought.” Vox
4.
As California is inundated by water, much of the precious resource is spilling out to sea. Erica Gies, a journalist who writes about water, argued that California can save its big rains without adding new reservoirs by collecting it in ancient buried riverbeds along the Central Valley: “Moving away from our strict control mind-set toward more respect for water’s natural cycles can make our human habitat more flexible and strengthen our ability to go with the flow.” N.Y. Times
Statewide
5.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said California would face a $22.5 billion budget deficit in the coming fiscal year, an abrupt reversal from last year when the state had an unprecedented $100 billion surplus. The whiplash was attributed to California’s reliance on tax collections from wealthy residents, whose income tends to be influenced by the stock market. In a slimmed-down budget proposal, Newsom cut climate investments but preserved big spending on homelessness, including $750 million for clearing encampments. SFGATE | Bloomberg
6.
Dianne Feinstein, the oldest sitting U.S. senator and a giant of California politics, hasn’t said whether she’ll seek another term in 2024. But Rep. Katie Porter, 49, announced Tuesday that she planned to fight for her seat, a move that delighted some Democrats and rankled others. In a video, the progressive Irvine attorney said “California needs a warrior in Washington.” Feinstein, 89, has faced pressure to step aside because of concerns about her age. A.P. | S.F. Chronicle
7.
An unlikely culinary oasis in the heart of Central California cow country, black sand beaches at the foot of the towering King Range, and the only surviving town in the United States to have been built by and for Chinese immigrants.
The San Francisco Chronicle shared a list of 10 California places begging to be explored in 2023.
Northern California
8.
A San Francisco art gallery owner was captured on video Monday spraying water from a garden hose at a homeless woman on the sidewalk. Collier Gwin was unapologetic, saying the woman had tipped garbage cans and refused to move. “I said you have to move; I cannot clean the street; move down,” he said. “She starts screaming belligerent things, spitting, yelling at me.” As outrage spread online, civil liberties groups portrayed the incident as symptom of San Francisco’s policies toward the homeless. S.F. Chronicle | SFGATE
9.
Increasing numbers of Californians are feeling stuck. They include Kevin Frazier, a Berkeley Law graduate who wrote about his decision to turn down a job offer in San Francisco and pursue the American Dream in Montana. “The same ingenuity, desperation and persistence that motivated people to head west over 150 years ago is now driving Californians to the mountains of Montana and beyond,” he wrote. S.F. Chronicle
Southern California
10.
“One minute you’re making mint tea at home, the next you’re invited to be the Black face of an embattled white organization. Life really comes at you fast.”
The standup comedian Jerrod Carmichael delivered a memorable monologue as host of the 80th Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills on Tuesday. YouTube | L.A. Times
“The Banshees of Inisherin.” “Abbott Elementary.” “The White Lotus.” See the full list of winners. 👉 Hollywood Reporter
Red Carpet galleries. 👉 The Cut | Vulture
11.
Mick LaSalle, the longtime movie critic, denounced a lawsuit by two stars of 1968’s “Romeo and Juliet” in which they alleged to have been sexually exploited in connection with a nude scene in the film. “Leonard] Whiting and [Olivia] Hussey are essentially sacrificing their artistic identities and desecrating one of the most beautiful films of a generation at the altar of today’s neo-Puritanism and in the pursuit of money — lots of money.” S.F. Chronicle
12.
The snowy owl of Cypress has turned a quiet residential neighborhood into a birdwatchers convention as thousands of people armed with cameras and tripods crowd the streets. Some are said to have arrived from out of state. The owl, more than 1,000 miles south of its normal winter range, has remained within a half-square-mile area since as early as Dec. 12, perching on rooftops and snatching rats and gophers most likely from a nearby golf course. A TikToker captured the scene. @evesketchbook | SFGATE
Thanks for reading!
The California Sun is written by Mike McPhate, a former California correspondent for the New York Times.
Make a one-time contribution to the California Sun.
Get a California Sun mug, T-shirt, phone case, or hoodie.
Forward this email to a friend.
Click here to stop delivery, and here to update your billing information or cancel your support.
The California Sun, PO Box 6868, Los Osos, CA 93412
Wake up to must-read news from around the Golden State delivered to your inbox each morning.