With all the El Niño talk building up over the last few months, Los Angeles has been preparing and bracing for heavy downpours and flooding that haven't yet materialized. But just because they're a little late doesn't mean they aren't on the way, and this week might be a little teaser of what's to come, with days of rain, rain, and more rain in the forecast, thanks to an incoming storm that will also bring high, possibly "damaging" surf to the coast, says the National Weather Service. Mayor Eric Garcetti tells CBS LA, "Come Tuesday, this is going to be a tremendous storm, and we're going to see the Los Angeles River almost go up to the top later in the week." To help with prep, the city's launched a handy new storm-tracking map.
Though the map doesn't look too ominous now (because it's not raining in LA), zoom out to see the green cluster of light rain to the northwest. The map shows not only where it's raining but also, using color-coding, how severe the rains are. There are layers on the map that will show flooding and storm information when the weather gets intense, and allow users to see weather webcams in various locations throughout the LA area, plus how traffic is moving on freeways. The map is also helpful in that crucial preparation period before a storm arrives, because it also pinpoints where free sandbags are available, the locations of hardware stores and winter shelters, and the streets where trash collection might be delayed in the event of moderate or heavy rainfall. With two to four inches of rain predicted tomorrow for foothill and mountain areas, and the possibility of brief heavy showers and scattered thunderstorms later in the week, this map is likely going to come in handy.
· El Niño: LA Map [Official site]
· Southern California's El Niño Storms Are Running Late—When Will They Show Up? [Curbed LA]
· How LA is Prepping to Take This Winter's Monster El Niño [Curbed LA]