Just before the arrival of the tropical storm Hilary A 5.1 magnitude earthquake struck the US state of California. The epicenter of the quake on Sunday afternoon (local time) was near the small town of Ojai, a good 100 kilometers north-west of Los Angeles, according to the USGS.
The earthquake station initially did not assume major damage, and there was also no tsunami warning. According to media reports, the earthquake was felt in Los Angeles. The west coast state braced for the arrival of tropical storm on Sunday Hilary before, which was expected for the early evening. As the US hurricane center announced, the storm was moving faster than initially predicted, and it was already raining heavily in the southwestern United States during the day.
Media reports of two dead in Mexico
Hilary had previously made landfall in Mexico. The storm, which has since been downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm, reached the coast of Baja California, the Mexican weather service announced on Sunday. The weather service predicted very heavy to heavy rain for the peninsula and the north-east of the country, as well as strong winds and high waves. The sustained wind speeds of Hilary were reportedly at 110 kilometers per hour. Nevertheless, the storm remained dangerous.
According to media reports, two people have already died in Mexico. A man died in northwestern Mexico as a result of flooding along the Pacific coast, the newspaper said El Universal reported. Accordingly, a delivery truck was washed away in the municipality of Navolato in the state of Sinaloa. The driver was found dead a few kilometers away. In the city of Mulegé in Baja California came, according to the newspaper Milenio another person died trying to cross a river.
California prepared for the hurricane’s arrival. In many places by the sea, sandbags have been filled, many windows have been barricaded and their belongings have been cleared inside. According to the hurricane center, heavy rainfall is expected, especially in the south of the state, where cities like San Diego and the greater Los Angeles area are located. In some areas, “dangerous to catastrophic floods” are possible.
For most Californians, a tropical storm is also new territory in their state. The last such catastrophe was 84 years ago. It was September 1939 nearly 100 people died.