The canopy of a Valero gas station on Callan Boulevard in South San Francisco, Calif., sits at a diagonal after being toppled in high winds, Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
As the Bay Area braced itself Wednesday morning for a “bomb cyclone” approaching the region, parts of Northern California began enduring the worst of the storm.
By noon, Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency over the extreme weather event while public safety workers across Sonoma County were ramping up their response to reports of downed power lines and trees. Outages affecting up to 17,000 residents were also reported in downtown San Jose.
This latest storm is an atmospheric river, essentially a giant conveyor belt of water in the sky and moisture-rich maelstrom rolling in from the Pacific Ocean to fill California’s reservoirs and blanket the Sierra Nevada with snow, which has the potential to cause catastrophic flooding and mudslides.
By the scale used to measure the strength and impact of such weather systems, this torrent is a Category 3 out of 5. The scale meteorologists use bases the five categories of intensity on the duration of the tempest and the magnitude of water content called the Integrated Water Vapor Transport (IVT).
Wednesday’s atmospheric river is also being labeled a “bomb cyclone” for its rapid strengthening off-shore. That term describes an area of low pressure that intensified by 24 millibars within 24 hours, with millibars being a unit of measurement for atmospheric pressure.
Grounded from lofty definitions and weather science meanwhile are the residents grappling with surviving the wind-whipped deluge. Below are photos documenting their experiences. While we encourage your safest preparation and response to this emergency, if you have any visuals to share, please email photovideo@bayareanewsgroup.com.
Firefighters look over the scene as a utility pole lays across the hood of a vehicle 10th Avenue on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023 in Oakland, Calif. A large tree along with a toppled utility pole blocked the intersection of 10th Avenue and East 28th Street. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group) A large tree blocks 10th Avenue on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023 in Oakland, Calif. The tree along with a toppled utility pole blocked the intersection of 10th Avenue and East 28th Street. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group) Paola Rodriguez, who has been living in a tent along Coyote Creek near Tully Road for the past four months, tries to decide what to bring when she evacuates later to a nearby library, on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023, in San Jose, Calif. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
San Jose Councilmember for District 7 Bien Doan, left, holds the hand of Janet Parks Swanson, 63, who is unhoused, as he helps her leave the homeless encampment along Coyote Creek at Tully Road on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023, in San Jose, Calif. A ruthless winter storm bore down on the Bay Area and Northern California on Wednesday, prompting emergency proclamations, school closures and multiple hazard warnings of potential flooding, debris flows and severe winds. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group) PG&E workers walk around the trunk of a large tree blocking 10th Avenue on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023 in Oakland, Calif. The tree along with a toppled utility pole blocked the intersection of 10th Avenue and East 28th Street. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group) Larry Sims and his dog Adobo dry off after a short, soggy walk at Sloat Beach in San Francisco, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023. The two were getting stir crazy at home and decided to brave the elements during a break in the storms. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
The storm formed a large sinkhole Wednesday on Glenwood Drive above Scotts Valley. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel) A throng of volunteers fill sandbags at Ramsay Park in Watsonville on Wednesday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel) Branden Sanchez (right), of Lighthouse Food Rescue and Distribution, informs unhoused Robert Moffitt, 63, of an evacuation center for people who have been living at the flooded Los Lagos encampment at Lone Bluff Park in San Jose, Calif., on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023. The National Weather Service issued a Flood Watch and High Wind Watch. (Josie Lepe for Bay Area News Group)
A broken utility pole lays across the back of a vehicle blocking Bella Vista Avenue on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023 in Oakland, Calif. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group) A member of the media looks over erosion damage on a hillside above Seaview Drive on Wednesday, January 4, 2023, in Richmond, Calif. Residents along the street were voluntarily evacuated due to erosion on the hill. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group) A damaged drainage culvert on a hillside above Seaview Drive on Wednesday, January 4, 2023, in Richmond, Calif. Residents along the street were voluntarily evacuated due to erosion on the hill. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group)
Richmond police closed Seacliff Way and Seaview Drive as some residents voluntarily evacuated their homes due to erosion on the hill at Seaview Drive and Seacliff Drive in Richmond, Calif., on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group) In this photo provided by Caltrans District 1, crews work at removing multiple fallen trees blocking U.S. Highway 101 in Humboldt County near Trinidad, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023. A major winter storm approached California on Wednesday causing crews to rush to clear storm drains in preparation for flooding and strong winds, as parts of the Midwest dealt with snow, ice or tornadoes, and the South recovered from strong overnight storms. (Caltrans District 1 via AP) An EBMUD employee works along Seaview Drive on Wednesday, January 4, 2023, in Richmond, Calif. Residents along the street were voluntarily evacuated due to erosion on a nearby hill. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group)
A man fills sandbags, Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023, in Pacifica, Calif. A major winter storm approached California on Wednesday causing crews to rush to clear storm drains in preparation for flooding and strong winds, as parts of the Midwest dealt with snow, ice or tornadoes, and the South recovered from strong overnight storms. (AP Photo/Haven Daley) Lights reflect on the slick streets of San Francisco’s Union Square district as a new set of storms takes aim at the Bay Area, Wednesday evening, Jan. 4, 2023. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
Dylan J. Bouscher is a multimedia editor focused on breaking news and telling stories in words, photos and videos. Previously, he produced, scripted and edited national and world news and local entertainment videos for LA Times, Chicago Tribune and Sun Sentinel newspapers. He is a meddling kid turned Florida Man, made in Miami and now running Bay Area trails off-the-clock.
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