California gets more rain and snow, but dry days ahead

More rain and snow fell in storm-hit California over the weekend, making travel hazardous and prompting new evacuation orders over fears of flooding a swollen river near Sacramento.

Bands of thunderstorms with gusty winds began on Saturday in the north and spread to the south, with another atmospheric river storm following shortly after Sunday, the National Weather Service said.

Up to two inches (5 cm) of rain was predicted to fall in the water-saturated Sacramento Valley, where residents of semi-rural Wilton, home to about 5,000 people, were ordered to evacuate as the Cosumnes River continued to rise.

Three inches (7.6 cm) of snow and gusty winds were expected in the Sierra Nevada. Interstate 80, a key highway from the San Francisco Bay Area to the ski resorts at Lake Tahoe, reopened after being closed for most of Saturday due to slippery roads, snow and white spots.

UC Berkeley’s Central Sierra Snow Lab reported Sunday morning that 21.5 inches (54 centimeters) of snow fell in 24 hours. Its about 10 feet (3 meters) snowpack is expected to grow a few more feet by Monday.

A remote area avalanche warning has been issued for the central Sierra, including the Great Lake Tahoe region, through Monday.

The California Highway Patrol rescued three people whose car slipped off a rain-soaked road on Friday and ended up on the edge of a cliff in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The occupants of the car “feared for their lives and did not believe it” when they were safely pulled out of the car as the front of the car hung precariously over the edge of a cliff, the Highway Patrol said in a statement.

“We can’t stress this enough. Please drive ONLY when necessary,” the statement said.

A little further south, in Santa Cruz County, the tiny community of Felton Grove along the San Lorenzo River was under an evacuation warning.

The flooded Salinas River flooded farmland in Monterey County. To the east, a flood warning was in place for Merced County in the agricultural Central Valley, where Gov. Gavin Newsom traveled on Saturday to sum up the problems and warn of even greater potential danger.

“We’re not done yet,” Newsom said. He urged people to remain vigilant for safety for a few more days as the last of the Nine Atmospheric River Parade is expected to pass.

In Southern California, winter storm warnings and advisories were in place for mountainous areas, where many roads remained impassable due to mud and rock slides. Two lanes of northbound Interstate 5 near Castaic in northern Los Angeles County were closed indefinitely after a hillside collapse.

A series of storms have brought rain and snow to California since late December, cutting off power to thousands, flooding roads, unleashing mudslides and causing landslides.

President Joe Biden declared a major statewide disaster and ordered federal assistance to supplement local efforts to rebuild affected areas.

At least 19 people died in the storm, and a 5-year-old boy went missing after being thrown out of his mother’s car by flood waters in San Luis Obispo County.

Dry days are expected in California this week starting Tuesday.