Waves and flooding on the Southern California coast

Waves of 2 to 2.7 metres hit the coast over the weekend of 10 and 11 October, and Observador reported tides at Long Beach 49 centimetres above forecast. On Saturday, 10 October, the waves battered and swept away a section of boardwalk on the Long Beach Peninsula while water rushed into homes, according to the Washington Post. The city of Long Beach said 13 homes had been red-tagged, meaning they were deemed unsafe for entry, and another was damaged enough to be unsafe to live in. A different tally counted at least eight buildings classified as unsafe, with nine closed and one under conditional use, so the figures differ and were recorded at different times. In Dana Point, homes already damaged in September were on the verge of collapse and sidewalks were falling into the sea, according to an ABC7 report. In Newport Beach, waves sent water into the streets on Friday, 9 October, but a sand berm spared the town from the worst of the flooding.

Record rain in Las Vegas

Rain from the remnants of Rachel reached Las Vegas on Sunday, 11 October, with 1.08 inches falling into Sunday morning. The National Weather Service said that amount tied the all-time daily October rainfall record, and the last time that much rain fell on the city in one October day was in 1947. Observador instead described the figure as a new daily maximum, so the two accounts differ on whether the record was matched or broken. Videos posted on social media showed water rushing down a street near the Las Vegas Strip, with a Ferris wheel and casinos in the background. Gusts also brought down power lines in the city. A weather service meteorologist, Andrew Orrison, said the worst of the storm had passed but that disturbed weather was still lingering.

“We've seen the worst of what Rachel brought... but unfortunately we are looking at the disturbed weather still lingering”

Storm track, El Nino and flood watches

Rachel had weakened before making landfall in Mexico's Baja California on Saturday, 10 October, according to the Washington Post. Kelvin waves warming West Coast waters are pushing tides higher than normal, which carries waves farther up the beaches, and BFMTV reports that such a wave raises sea level by about 30 centimetres. The Pacific is also in a strong El Nino, declared in June, which BFMTV says could soon become the most intense on record. Forecasters issued flood watches on Monday, 12 October, covering large parts of Utah, southeast Idaho, and northern and central Arizona, including the Grand Canyon. The weather service said the additional rain comes from a different system rather than Rachel and is forecast to end by Wednesday, 14 October.

Hurricane Isaias on the Gulf Coast

Rachel was not the only storm in the country, as Hurricane Isaias, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, came ashore on Friday, 9 October as a Category 2 hurricane near Destin, Florida. The storm then moved into Alabama with tropical-force winds before heading farther north, and at least four deaths have been linked to it. On Monday morning, 12 October, about 158,000 customers were without power in the Florida Panhandle and southern Alabama, according to poweroutage.com. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said he expected nearly everyone to have power restored by Tuesday night, 13 October. The East Coast is forecast to stay clear because Isaias has moved well offshore.