Officials in California distributed sandbags, prepositioned rescue swimmers and told residents to have their go-bags ready as the state prepares for an atmospheric river that could bring heavy rain, winds and flooding on Thursday to areas ravaged by wildfires.
Southern California could see as much as 6 inches (about 15 centimeters) of rain in the mountains and 3 inches (about 7.6 centimeters) in coastal areas and valleys, according to Brent Bower, hydrologist with the National Weather Service. Strong wind gusts could bring down trees, cause power outages and delay flights.
