Beaches were ordered closed and people rushed to stores to stock up on water and other essentials. Flash floods and even tornado warnings were issued for some areas.
Hilary earlier reached Category 4 – the second-most powerful on the five-step Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale – but was downgraded to a tropical storm as it headed towards the densely populated Mexican border city of Tijuana.
Despite the weakening, US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) administrator Deanne Criswell urged people to take the dangers seriously.
“Hurricane Hilary is going to be a serious impact and threat to southern California,” she said on CNN.
California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for much of the state’s southern area.
“Stay safe, California,” he wrote on social media as Hilary approached.
Authorities opened five storm shelters and deployed more than 7,500 personnel, including several hundred National Guard soldiers as well as swift water rescue teams, Newsom’s office said.
In San Diego, people filled sandbags to prepare for possible flooding, while lifeguards warned people to stay out of the sea.
“VERY, VERY DANGEROUS”
One person died in Mexico after a vehicle was swept away by a swollen river, Mexico’s Civil Protection agency said, while warning of landslides and road closures in Baja California.
The Mexican army opened 35 shelters providing refuge to 1,725 people affected by the storm.
Hilary was expected to deposit up to 25cm of rain on parts of California and Nevada, “leading to dangerous to catastrophic flooding”, according to the NHC.
Source: CNA
