Moving almost due north, it skirted water again in the far northern Gulf of Mexico and came into the U.S. near Yuma at the California/Arizona border, with winds still at tropical storm strength.

HALL: California has a very robust system of water storage, especially the reservoirs lining the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. And in Northern California, there are very large reservoirs.

Moving almost due north, it skirted water again in the far northern Gulf of Mexico and came into the U.S. near Yuma at the California/Arizona border, with winds still at tropical storm strength.

California is usually spared from hurricanes because of cooler waters off its shores. Tropical storms gather strength from heat energy in warm water, and one hasn’t made landfall in California ...

Cities across the Southern California region experienced torrential rains because of the tropical storm — Los Angeles, for example, saw 5.24" in just 24 hours.

Cachuma Lake, located near Santa Ynez, California, pictured above on January 20, 2023. Despite an onslaught of rain, Tropical Storm Hilary appeared to not have impacted the lake's water levels ...

After January storms, the California Department of Water Resources raises its allocation to state water agencies to 30% from 5% only two months ago.

In general, atmospheric rivers pick up water vapor from the warm, moist air of tropical regions and then drop the water over land in cooler regions as rain or snow.

Tropical Storm Kathleen — which had briefly been a hurricane over the ocean — hit Baja California on Sept. 9 and crossed into the U.S. on Sept. 10, wreaking havoc in California and Arizona ...