Tropical Storm Rachel Approaches US-Mexico Border: Rare Tropical Storm Watches for Southern California, Flood Threat Across the Southwest
As the remnants of Atlantic Hurricane Isaias deliver flooding rains to the U.S. Southeast, Tropical Storm Rachel is bearing down on the U.S.-Mexico border. The U.S. National Hurricane Center forecasts Rachel to strike near northern Baja California late Saturday, bringing flooding rains across the U.S. Southwest — including parts of California, Arizona and Nevada — with rare tropical storm watches issued across Southern California, including for San Diego.
Tropical storm watches are an exceptionally rare event for Southern California. The NHC cautioned that swimming is dangerous in surf generated by a tropical system even when the storm itself is hundreds of miles away; Rachel's swell will continue affecting south-facing beaches in Southern California through the weekend.
The main inland threat is heavy rain and flooding. The storm's downpours are expected to sweep across the U.S. Southwest after landfall, with flood risks in parts of Arizona and Nevada as well. Northern Baja California faces damaging wind gusts and heavy rain on the Mexican side of the border.
The weekend brings a double threat to the region: to the south, major Category 4 Hurricane Simon is expected to make landfall on Mexico's Pacific coast on Sunday, with its inland rain track carrying heavy precipitation northward through Nayarit and into Sinaloa through Sunday and Monday. Authorities on both sides of the border urge residents to follow local emergency management guidance — and treat any storm surge warning as a directive requiring immediate action. (Sources: U.S. National Hurricane Center, Reuters, Bloomberg)
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：墨西哥太平洋沿岸外海的热带气旋卫星云图（资料图）。NOAA官方影像，公有领域，来源：Wikimedia Commons
