Such devastation due to floods in America, Emergency had to be imposed, 19 killed, loss of 2 lakh crores

The US state of California is in the grip of a dangerous storm. So far 19 people have lost their lives due to the storm that has been going on for two weeks. How serious the situation in California is can be gauged from the fact that President Biden has declared an emergency there on Sunday.
According to America’s National Weather Service, there is a possibility of heavy rain on Monday as well. This will increase California’s problems even more. The Atmospheric River is being said to be responsible for this horrific storm.
Now first of all understand from the graphic what is an atmospheric river?
According to the New York Times, California has been hit by 8 atmospheric rivers in the past two weeks. According to the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes, as many atmospheric rivers are formed in California in a whole year, they were formed in a few weeks. Somewhere it is raining in the form of rain and somewhere it is bringing snow storm. Right now two more atmospheric rivers are expected to come to California.
75 thousand people were asked to go to a safe place
According to emergency officials, a warning has been issued to 75 thousand people from the state to reach a safe place. More than 20 thousand people are forced to live without electricity.
Many highways, roads and bridges in California have been destroyed by water. Many houses have either been damaged or have collapsed. Due to heavy rains, storms and floods in California, a loss of 2 lakh crore rupees ($ 30 billion) has been feared so far. According to Bloomberg’s report, many businesses in California have come to a standstill due to the storm. This loss figure is an estimate. The actual loss will be assessed after the situation becomes normal.
In the city of Sacramento, which is also known as the City of Trees in America, about 1000 trees have fallen in the last 6 days. According to the US Forest Service, some trees that fell in the storm were 80 to 100 years old. The northern part of California was the first to be hit by the storm. Landslides, flood waters and fallen trees have blocked all roads here. Due to poor conditions in San Luis Obispo County, authorities called off the search for a 5-year-old boy who was thrown from his mother’s arms.
This is how the storm pattern changed in California in the last 20 days
The storm started in California after Christmas i.e. from 26 December. As of December 30, rainfall from the storm in California was between 4 inches and 6 inches. Whereas after December 30, the storm started causing havoc. By January 13, the rains picked up pace and the average rainfall in a day increased from 6 inches to 10 inches. In Santa Barbara, more than 20 inches of rain was recorded in one day in January.
According to a New York Times report, winds gusted more than 50 miles per hour in many areas of California. On January 8, winds gusted up to 39 mph were reported in the Central Valley and San Francisco. The speed of the storm is expected to slow down this week. At the same time, according to some weather reports, the 9th Atmospheric River can engulf California.
‘California’s hurricane is one of the biggest storms in history’
The Director of Emergency Services at the California Governor’s Office said the storm was one of the biggest storms in the state’s history. This California flood reminded people of the flood of 1861. Even then, during Christmas itself, floods started wreaking havoc. According to the report of Michael D. Dettinger, a researcher of the US Geological Survey, the flood of 1861 continued for 43 days. At that time also such conditions were created in California due to the atmospheric river.
After all, how and why Atmospheric River is formed?
Atmospheric rivers are generally formed in tropical regions. Due to the hot temperature there, sea water turns into steam and accumulates in the atmosphere. Strong winds drive the water vapor towards the upper surface of the atmosphere. During this, water vapor moves from one place to another on the surface of the earth like a river with strong winds.
‘Pineapple Express’ is the name of the world’s largest and most dangerous atmospheric river. Its maximum effect is seen in the western part of America and Canada. Because of this ‘Pineapple Express’, it is raining up to 5 inches in a day at many places in California.
Apart from California, 27 people died due to floods in the Philippines
At the same time, apart from California, floods are also wreaking havoc in the Philippines. So far 27 people have died there. Thousands of people have had to leave their homes due to the flood. At least three typhoons have made landfall in the Philippines since the start of the year. Landslides are happening at many places due to floods. More than 83 thousand people have been evacuated from their homes and kept in safe places. According to the Civil Defense Office there, so far 1200 houses have been completely destroyed due to floods.