CBS News
Rainfall from Hilary almost met the yearly average for some areas of California
Tropical Storm Hilary dumped inches of rain on Southern California on Sunday, with some areas seeing rainfall totals that almost met their average rainfall total for the year.
Palm Springs usually sees just 4.85 inches of rain a year. Hilary, however, dropped a whopping 3.18 inches of rain on the city by Sunday evening, making it the wettest August day for the area.
The previous record for wettest August day in Palm Springs was set on Aug. 17, 1930, when rain after Hurricane Doreen dumped 2.03 inches on the city.
Hilary has also broken the record for wettest day in August for several other areas, according to the National Weather Service.
In nearby San Jacinto, which usually gets 12.51 inches of rain annually, Hilary dropped a whopping 11.73 inches in two days, according to the service.
Even though Hilary was downgraded to a tropical storm before it made landfall in California, the storm caused flooding in parts of the state, and a flash flood warning was in effect for Los Angeles, Glendale and Santa Clarita until Monday morning.
The average rainfall in Los Angeles depends on the area, but it ranges from about 12 inches at ocean level to about 24 inches in the foothills, according the service.
The Hollywood Reservoir usually gets 12 inches of rain annually and just 0.01 inch in August. But it saw 4.92 inches of rain from Hilary, the service said in its two-day rainfall report.
Downtown Los Angeles recorded 2.48 inches of rainfall on Sunday, making it the wettest August day ever in that area, according to the service. What’s more, Los Angeles County usually has a dry summer, with most of its rainfall occurring in winter.
Death Valley is known for its extreme heat and drought conditions, with an average of 2.24 inches of rain annually. But even this desert area was affected by Hilary and the service issued a flood watch for Death Valley and surrounding areas, in effect until Tuesday.
Hilary was forecast to hit Death Valley and nearby Las Vegas on Monday morning. Death Valley National Park was closed on Monday because flooding had already begun.
On Instagram, the park shared a video of the rushing floodwaters at Zabriskie Point on Monday morning and said conditions are expected to worsen as Hilary continues to dump water on the area over the next few days.
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CBS News
Secret Santa gives out thousands of dollars to North Carolina residents devastated by Hurricane Helene
Avery County, North Carolina — Some people were skeptical, at first, of the stranger who rolled into flood-ravaged Avery County in western North Carolina this week claiming to be some kind of Santa.
Yet, he persisted, approaching people in parking lots, grocery stores, and even motel rooms, where those displaced by Hurricane Helene are still sheltering three months after the devastating storm.
Every year, this anonymous, wealthy businessman travels the country during the holidays giving away about $100,000 in $100 bills.
The money goes to random strangers and people he seeks out, knowing their need. Why did this Secret Santa want to come to North Carolina?
“I think when people go through tragedy, they can lose their house — all their belongings,” he told CBS News. “But what they can’t lose is hope. And maybe we can give a little hope.”
Among those he sought out was Jamie Guinn. During the height of Helene, a mudslide ripped the garage off the Avery County home Guinn lived in with his wife, Melissa.
“I grabbed ahold of her and I said, ‘At least we got each other,'” Jamie told CBS News. “‘We can fix the house.’ And it couldn’t have been 10 minutes later, and I remember just getting crushed.”
A second mudslide took the whole house and claimed Melissa’s life.
“You haven’t really lost her because she’s with you and she’s smiling down on you right now,” Secret Santa told Guinn.
It’s those words of comfort — the hugs and the hope from a total stranger — that really seem to move people, much more than the money itself.
“That’s the gift, that you haven’t been forgotten about, that we do know you’re there,” the Secret Santa said. “And we do care.”
Secret Santa always says that kindness is the bridge between all people – a bridge that cannot be burned, bombed or washed away in a flood. It’s always there, just waiting for us to cross.
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