An unusual torrent of rain and flash flooding hit the San Diego area on Monday, shutting down highways, swamping roads and forcing several schools to send students home early.
Officials are fielding numerous rescue calls after up to three inches fell in three hours, according to the National Weather Service. The agency noted that the San Diego River was actively flooding, with water levels still rising.
The area had already received more rain on Monday than it did during the much feared Tropical Storm Hilary last August.
“By all indications, this will shake out as one of the top 10 wettest days for the airport here out of all the climate records going back to the 1800s,” said Brian Adams, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in San Diego. “It’s been a day, yeah.”
Some schools in the region closed early because of flooding or loss of power, while those at others were advised to shelter in place. About 14,500 San Diego Gas & Electric customers had lost electricity as of Monday afternoon, according to PowerOutage.us.
“We have had power outages, loss of communication and flooding at some sites,” the National School District in San Diego County said on X.
After two homeless shelters flooded, the city of San Diego scrambled to transport people to public gymnasiums. The San Diego Central Library also closed after its parking garage flooded, while the San Diego Police Department announced that both of the front counters at its downtown headquarters would be closed for the day. Sandbags were offered at recreation centers across the city.