Los Angeles, CA, United States (AHN) – California is being battered by heavy wind, rain and snow resulting in thousands left without power.
The storms rolled in Friday and the entire state has been affected. The Santa Monica Mountains in the south have had more than 12 inches of rain while Mammouth Mountain ski resort received 13 feet of snow.
Central Los Angeles has been deluged with 5 inches of rain since Friday morning, accounting for more than a third of the region’s average annual amount. Rivers of mud are flowing down Los Angeles’ famed Hollywood Hills.
Nearly 21,000 people in the southern portion of the state are without power, while in the farming region in the central part of the state 2,000 people were told to evacuate.
Residents travelling on roadways in the region are crawling at a snail’s pace as cars inch along bumper to bumper. In some areas people are wading through knee-high waters.
With the inclement weather officials are warning of the dangers of flash flooding. The rain could also send the rising rivers and streams in the area surging out of their banks.
The U.S. National Weather Service warned that a new storm would “bring heavy rain” through Wednesday afternoon.
As bad as it is on the western side of North America, Europe is being battered even harder. Much of Europe is under a blanket of snow that is expected to continue to fall for the next several days.
Freezing weather has crippled the infrastructure of the region’s travel. Thousands of travelers are stranded across the continent as flights and train service have been cancelled for days.
Britain’s Heathrow Airport, the largest air hub in Europe, has been operating under limited service for days. The resulting logistical disaster has sparked criticism from the thousands of stranded travelers and even the government.
Even 72 hours after the first major snowfall, the airport reportedly still has a lack of snow clearing machines and personnel that are seemingly the root of the airport’s major problems.
British Airways is likely to make a “significant number of cancellations,” according to the airline, further adding to the frustration of travelers during what is one of the busiest times of the year.
Iced-over roadways have also caused more than their share of problems. Some roads are so impassable drivers opted to just abandon their vehicles in heavy snow and walk.
In what is also the busiest shopping time of the year, the weather is proving to be contentious for retailers. They fear the poor weather will affect their sales.
Earlier this month insurer RSA said the snow could cost the British economy up to $2 billion dollars a day.
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