Reuters North American News Service, January 5th, 2008
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. (Reuters) - A fierce storm
swept through central and northern California Friday,
cutting power to more than 1 million homes and businesses,
closing major roads and canceling flights at several airports.
The storm may dump as much as 6 to 8 feet
of snow through the weekend in the higher elevations of
the Sierra Nevada, and up to 2 feet at the popular
tourist spot of Lake Tahoe, forecasters with the U.S. National
Weather Service said.
Southern California braced for possible flash floods and
mudslides in areas that burned in the October wildfires. Total
rainfall could reach 5 inches in Los Angeles and 10
inches in the mountains of Southern California -- the
most significant rainfall in the region since January 2005, and
on the heels of the driest year on record.
"It is very important, since there is so much land that has
burned, that we are prepared for mudslides," Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger said after being briefed by the Office of
Emergency Services.
There have been no reports of deaths or serious injuries,
the office said.
In San Francisco, winds blew scaffolding off buildings and
temporarily shut the main thoroughfare, Market Street, while
the landmark Alcatraz Island, the former prison and now
national park, was closed to visitors.
Big trucks were barred from the Golden Gate Bridge, where
winds reached 55 mph . The nearby Richmond-San Rafael
Bridge, which connects two of the state's major highways, was
blocked most of the day by a toppled truck.
"There is a lot of rain coming down in the valleys, a lot
of snow in the mountains and there is a lot of wind with speeds
of 100 miles to 150 miles per hour in the Sierra
Nevada," Schwarzenegger added. "So please be very cautious."
Near Lake Tahoe, home to the state's most popular ski
resorts, a stretch of the main road connecting northern
California and Nevada was closed down.
Many of the resorts were closed Friday due to the high
winds.
(Additional reporting by Bernie Woodall and Mary Milliken in
Los Angeles and Adam Tanner in San Francisco)
