ENOUGH ALREADY! WET AND WILD WEATHER TESTS SOUTHLANDERS.Byline: Melissa Schmitt and Jesse Hiestand Daily News Staff Writers After a winter of storms, with rain hammering Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, yet again Tuesday, Los Angeles residents stopped and wondered: Will it ever end? ``I'm tired of it,'' said Studio City resident Sue Bergeson, 37. Too bad, because there's a 40 percent chance of rain today. Clouds and more chilly temperatures are coming this way Thursday and Friday, with a slight chance of more rain Saturday. Tuesday's storm helped break records for cold weather. The Los Angeles Civic Center reached just 58 degrees, smashing the lowest-high record of 61 degrees set in 1935, the National Weather Service said. Cars slipped and slid across the freeways, causing more than 70 crashes. Sea lions sought refuge on Zuma Beach, where lifeguards warned curious people to stay away. And the Los Angeles Dodgers "Dodgers" and "Brooklyn Dodgers" redirect here. For the American football team, see Brooklyn Dodgers (football). For the Eastern Basketball Association team, see Brooklyn Dodgers (basketball). wondered all day if they could come out and play baseball, facing the possibility of a rainout rain·out n. An event, such as an athletic contest, that has been rained out. Radioactive material in the atmosphere brought down by precipitation. for the first time since April 21, 1988. It wasn't until minutes before the first pitch was to be thrown that the Dodgers were told the game would go on - then told it might not, then told it would. The game finally began after a 59-minute rain delay. It was like that all day, everywhere in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. and Southern California. By midday Tuesday, forecasters said Los Angeles already had been pounded by more than a half-inch of rain, breaking a May 12, 1888, record set for rainfall. More than an inch was expected to fall by midnight, said meteorologist Bruce Rockwell. Making matters worse, the weather was better in Aspen, Colo., where residents long ago put away their skis and are basking in the sun. Not here. Snow fell in the mountains. Angelenos, briefly teased by warm, dry weather with the idea that El Nino finally had taken its long-overdue leave, were sacked by temperatures in the low 60s - for highs. Rocks slid on the northbound Antelope Valley Freeway The Antelope Valley Freeway is a freeway in Los Angeles and Kern counties in southern California. It is signed as California State Highway 14 along its length. It connects Greater Los Angeles to the rapidly developing Antelope Valley. . Forecasters warned of possible twisters. Meteorologists Atmospheric scientists
Rockwell said there's plenty more miserable weather on the way. And even though meteorologists said it wasn't at fault, that old nemesis El Nino took the blame for the wintry win·try also win·ter·y adj. win·tri·er also win·ter·i·er, win·tri·est also win·ter·i·est 1. Belonging to or characteristic of winter; cold. 2. weather. ``This El Nino or whatever it is - it's brother, sister, father - is awful,'' grumbled 70-year-old Thelma Nash, as she and her husband took refuge from the rain in Topanga Plaza. ``It should be sunny and warm.'' Climate experts cautioned against trying to pin any one storm on El Nino, including this one which originated in the Gulf of Alaska Noun 1. Gulf of Alaska - a gulf of the Pacific Ocean between the Alaska Peninsula and the Alexander Archipelago Pacific, Pacific Ocean - the largest ocean in the world . But those experts also said that the weather-altering phenomenon is still with us. Satellite images released Tuesday by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Jet Propulsion Laboratory “JPL” redirects here. For other uses, see JPL (disambiguation). Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a NASA research center located in the cities of Pasadena and La Cañada Flintridge, near Los Angeles, California, USA. showed the pool of unusually warm ocean water that fuels El Nino has changed little since the last snapshot, taken in March. But that didn't do much for Valley commuters, who played demolition derby on the freeways during Tuesday's downpour. Nearly 70 crashes clogged Los Angeles roadways, police said, including one series on the Ventura Freeway that included 15 cars and backed up traffic for three miles. ``This unseasonable un·sea·son·a·ble adj. 1. Not suitable to or appropriate for the season. 2. Not characteristic of the time of year: unseasonable weather. 3. Poorly timed; inopportune. wet weather appears to have caused a spike in our activities with L.A. city firefighters handling nearly three times the number of traffic collisions than on a dry day,'' said Los Angeles Fire Department The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), also known as the Los Angeles City Fire Department to distinguish it from the Los Angeles County Fire Department. It is the agency that provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of Los Angeles. spokesman Brian Humphrey. What comes next in terms of weather for Southern California is anyone's guess. But JPL's Bill Patzert said there's one thing he's sure of: ``Our buddy, El Nino, is still around.'' Many climate researchers expect the phenomenon to fall apart sometime in the next few months. But some long-range forecasts say dream on. They're predicting mild El Nino conditions to linger through the fall and into next winter. Still others call for the appearance of La Nina - a weather phenomenon that typically brings California dry winter weather. It will be months before forecasters, and Los Angeles, will have a better idea what will happen. Daily News Staff Writer David R. Baker contributed to this report. CAPTION(S): 4 Photos PHOTO (1 -- color) Caroline Maxwell leaps over a river of water on Lindley Avenue near CSUN CSUN California State University Northridge . Michael Owen Baker/Daily News (2) The road to Mount Pinos assumed a wintry look Tuesday as an arctic storm passed through. David R. Crane/Daily News (3) From left, Cathey Harr, Cera Garcia, Carrie Harr and Liz Harr wait out the rain at Dodger Stadium. (4) The Dodgers' groundskeeping Groundskeeping is the activity of tending an area of land for aesthetic or functional purposes; typically in an institutional setting. It includes mowing grass, trimming hedges, pulling weeds, planting flowers, etc. A person who engages in this work is called a groundskeeper. crew creates water channels at field level. Gus Ruelas/Daily News |
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