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Satellite images show massive atmospheric river that is barreling over the West Coast
Weather advisories were in effect for parts of the West Coast this week as powerful atmospheric rivers barreled in from the Pacific Ocean. Satellite images from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration captured the massive storms as they approached the coast, where they threatened to cause flooding and damage.
Atmospheric rivers are long regions in the atmosphere that transport water. The water vapor they carry is roughly equivalent to the average flow of water at the mouth of the Mississippi River, according to NOAA. So, when they make landfall and release all that water, they can cause extreme flooding.
NOAA
According to The Weather Channel, there are typically three to seven atmospheric rivers present in the world at any given time. They don’t only happen on the West Coast of the U.S., but a well-known atmospheric river, the “Pineapple Express,” does occur in this region.
The Pineapple Express is known to wallop the U.S. and Canada’s West Coasts with heavy rainfall and snow after building in the Pacific Ocean around Hawaii, according to NOAA. California can see up to five inches of rain in one day when the Pineapple Express arrives.
Back-to-back storms that pummeled the West Coast this week flowed along the Pineapple Express.
NOAA
Northern California and parts of the state’s central and southern regions were expected to get three to five inches of rain, with some spots receiving more than six inches, according to the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes. The Sierra Nevada mountain range in California was expected to get two feet of snow, but more than three feet in higher elevations.
On Thursday morning, a storm was bringing strong wind, rain and snow to parts of Northern California, like Sacramento, where some roads were restricted due to dangerous travel conditions, according to CBS Sacramento. The heavy winds even downed a tree in the state’s capital.
Sonoma and Marin counties, which are in the Bay Area, were also under flood advisories, CBS San Francisco reports. Parts of highways in Santa Clara and Sonoma counties were closed due to mudslides caused by the storm.
While atmospheric rivers could bring flooding and damage, they are an important part of the water supply and the rain and snow they bring could help fill reservoirs.
Snow was expected in the mountains this week, NOAA said. When snowpack melts it can fill reservoirs and help with drought relief.
NOAA
Several back-to-back atmospheric rivers hit California last winter, causing $4.6 billion in damage. CBS News recently joined a group of hurricane hunters as the NOAA scientists dropped instruments to measure wind speed and direction, temperature and humidity that will collect data points that will help improve the accuracy of forecasts. The powerful storms are expected to become stronger as the planet warms.
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Paris Hilton’s bill to protect minors at residential treatment facilities heads to president’s desk
Heiress, model and actor Paris Hilton is the force behind a bill headed to President Biden’s desk that’s aimed at preventing the abuse of minors at rehab and other residential facilities.
The House passed the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act in a bipartisan 373-33 vote Wednesday, after the Senate passed the bill by unanimous consent earlier in the week. It’s a cause that’s personal to Hilton, who says she was abused at residential treatment facilities as a teen. Hilton lived in a series of residential treatment facilities from the age of 16, testifying before Congress in June that she had been violently restrained, stripped of clothing and tossed into solitary confinement, among other experiences.
“Today is a day I will never forget,” Hilton wrote on Instagram. “After years of sharing my story and advocating on Capitol Hill, the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act has officially passed the U.S Congress. This moment is proof that our voices matter, that speaking out can spark change, and that no child should ever endure the horrors of abuse in silence. I did this for the younger version of myself and the youth who were senselessly taken from us by the Troubled Teen Industry.”
Now 43, Hilton has championed child protection legislation on Capitol Hill for years, encouraging lawmakers to pass regulations to help protect troubled teens from abuse at treatment centers. Hilton met with lawmakers on Capitol Hill this week, urging them to take up the legislation before the 118th Congress ends.
Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna introduced the legislation in the House and Senate, and they were joined by Republican Sens. John Cornyn and Tommy Tuberville and Republican Rep. Buddy Carter.
“Children across the country are at risk of abuse and neglect due to a lack of transparency in institutional youth treatment programs,” Khanna said in a statement. “The industry has gone unchecked for too long. Paris Hilton and other survivors of abuse in this broken system have bravely shared their stories and inspired change. I’m proud to lead this legislation with my colleagues to protect the safety and well-being of kids.”
The legislation creates a federal work group on youth residential programs to oversee the health, safety, care, treatment and placement of minors in rehab and other facilities. It also directs the Department of Health and Human Services to make contact with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine to make recommendations about state oversight of such programs.
Hilton is the great-grandaughter of Conrad Hilton, who founded Hilton Hotels.
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