'Hurriquake,' Record Rain, Mudslides, And Floods: Hilary Slams CA

CALIFORNIA — Southern Californians endured a large earthquake Sunday at the same time the first tropical storm to slam the Golden State in almost nine decades brought record-setting rainfall, widespread flash flooding, mudslides, downed trees, power outages, and a tornado warning.

Though the brunt of the storm was expected to pass overnight Sunday, much of Southern California remains under flood watch until late Monday night, including San Bernardino, Riverside, Los Angeles, and SanDiego county mountains as well as the High Desert, the San Gorgonio Pass, the Coachella Valley, and the San Diego County Deserts.

Tropical storm Hilary moved into Southern California Sunday afternoon causing flooding in coastal communities such as Seal Beach and Malibu and almost all of Southern California's mountain ranges and deserts including the Coachella Valley. The storm flooded major freeways in Los Angeles County and shut down a stretch of Interstate 10 in both directions in the Palm Desert area Sunday evening.

Mudslides and flash floods prompted swift water rescues and evacuations in burn scar areas. An evacuation order was issued on Sunday around 9 a.m. for the Mias zone in the Apple/El Dorado burn scar, north of Banning and near the Morongo Reservation, according to the Riverside County Emergency Management Department. A voluntary evacuation warning was issued for Highland Springs, Beaumont, Hemet, Banning and Reche Canyon Road in Colton ahead of the storm, according to the EMD.

Additionally, residents of Catalina Island were advised to leave as a precaution. Voluntary evacuations were in place in Silverado and Williams canyons, which compose part of the Bond Fire burn scar. The storm forced dozens of school districts to cancel class Monday for hundreds of thousands of students.

A massive boulder-filled mudslide in the Forest Falls area of the San Bernardino Mountains sent firefighters running for safety and blocked the roadway from their fire station. Their dramatic escape was captured on video.

By 9 p.m. Sunday, the storm had already dumped more than 6 inches of rain in some mountain communities and threatened more than an average year's worth of rain in inland desert areas. LA's San Fernando Valley region saw almost 3 inches of rain while Beverly Hills got more than 2 and a half inches of rain. The rainfall easily set records as the average August rainfall for Los Angeles is 0 inches. Even before the day's final tallies, rainfall records were set in Los Angeles and Long Beach, according to the National Weather Service.

"There were already many record daily rainfall records and even record daily rainfall for the month of August across SW CA with more rain to come," the weather service announced at 7 p.m. Sunday.

As evening fell in California Sunday, the National Weather Service in Los Angeles warned of significant flooding risk throughout populous mountain areas along the coast northeast of Los Angeles.

"PLEASE ... STAY OFF THE ROADS," the agency posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Mud and boulders spilled onto highways, water gushed onto roadways and tree branches fell in neighborhoods from San Diego to Los Angeles. Dozens of cars were trapped in floodwaters in typically hot and dry Palm Desert and surrounding communities across the Coachella Valley. Crews pumped floodwaters out of the emergency room at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage.

Wind gusts of 64 miles per hour were recorded in the San Gabriel Mountains, and authorities warned of falling trees and downed electric wires across the Southland as powerful wind gusts moved tore through the region.

The eye of the storm crisscrossed Southern California heading from inland Sand Diego to Southwest Riverside County to Compton to East LA, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for the San Diego region throughout the afternoon Sunday.

Firefighters across the region responded to reports of fallen trees, downed wires, flooded cars and at least one river rescue, but there were no immediate reports of major storm-related injuries by the end of the night.

"Fortunately, we have had no reports of any injuries or significant damage at this time," Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley said at a Sunday news conference with Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Newsom declared a state of emergency. The Federal Emergency Management Agency said it has officials inside California's emergency preparedness office and teams on standby with food, water, and other help.

"This afternoon I spoke to California Governor Gavin Newsom about the emergency preparedness measures in place and the initial response to Tropical Storm Hilary. I continue to be briefed on our preparedness efforts, and the storm's potential impact, including flooding," President Joe Biden said Sunday. "My administration stands ready to provide additional assistance as requested. I urge people to take this storm seriously and listen to state and local officials."

The Los Angeles Unified School District, the nation's second largest school system, said all campuses would be closed on Monday.

State and local leaders hosted a briefing at 4 p.m. Sunday in Los Angeles, where school district superintendent Alberto Carvalho announced all schools would close Monday out of an abundance of caution.

"The peak of this storm will take place in the middle of the night, depriving us of our ability to inspect schools or determine access to schools to be safe," Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said at a media briefing. "There is no way we can compromise the safety of a single child or an employee, and our inability to survey buildings, our inability to determine access to schools makes it nearly impossible for us to open schools."

San Diego schools postponed the first day of classes from Monday to Tuesday.

School District And College Closures Monday Include:

• Acton-Agua Dulce Unified School District
• Anaheim Union High School District
• Antelope Valley Union High School District
• Bear Valley Unified School District
• Beaumont Unified School District
• Bishop Conaty- Our Lady of Loretto High School
• Bishop Mora Salesian High School
• Castaic Union School District
• Cal State Fullerton
• Cal State San Marcos
• College of the Desert
• Eastside Union School District
• Hughes-Elizabeth Lakes Union School District
• Inglewood Unified School District
• Lancaster School District
• Los Angeles Unified School District
• Newhall School District
• Paramount Unified School District
• Pasadena Unified School District
• Palmdale School District
• Palomar College
• Redlands Unified School District
• Rialto Unified School District
• Rosemead School District
• San Diego Unified School District
• San Diego Community College District
• San Diego State University
• Saugus Union School District
• Sulphur Springs Union School District
• Westside Union School District
• William S. Hart Union High School District

The storm made landfall along Mexico's Baja California coast earlier Sunday as concerns mounted over what could be deadly flash flooding in the border city of Tijuana, Southern California, and places as far north as Idaho that rarely get such heavy rain.

Hilary hit the coast in a sparsely populated area about 150 miles south of Ensenada, Mexico. The storm caused flooding along the length of the Baja peninsula, and torrential rains threatened mudslide-prone Tijuana, where improvised houses cling to hillsides just south of the U.S. border. One person drowned Saturday in the Mexican town of Santa Rosalia when a vehicle was swept away in an overflowing stream.

"Rainfall flooding has been the biggest killer in tropical storms and hurricanes in the United States in the past 10 years and you don't want to become a statistic," Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan said in an online briefing from Miami.

The National Weather Service said the storm was largely tracking as expected through mid-afternoon Sunday, picking up speed to 20 knots as it continued north. Forecasters said the faster speed could mean an earlier — but stronger — peak.

"Because of the faster speeds of the motion of the storm, it means the storm has less time to weaken by the time it gets here," said Lisa Phillips, a meteorologist with NWS Los Angeles. "It also means the peak of the rainfall could be earlier."

Related: San Diego County Declares Local Emergency Due To Tropical Storm Hilary

In a news briefing earlier in the afternoon, the NWS joined leaders in San Diego County to provide updates on the timeline for the storm's arrival in SoCal.

"We've already seen 3 to 4 inches of rain at Mount Laguna for example — they're going to triple that," Alex Tardy, a senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service. said early Sunday. "In the coastal areas, the wind directions are coming from the north, and they're going to pick up as the eye center moves into San Diego County this afternoon."

Tardy urged residents to brace for a historic weather event and to take seriously any warnings issued throughout the day.

"1939 was the last tropical storm strength system that moved into Long Beach," he said. "After that, [in] 1997, Nora moved through the Imperial Valley. This is an event that hasn't happened before in terms of having a tropical storm, that kind of energy, taking a direct hit into San Diego County."

Related: Flash Flood Warning Issued For LA, Long Beach, Glendale

The impact of the storm peaked Sunday afternoon and evening in California with rain tapering off through Monday for most areas. Hilary was forecast to drop the majority of its accumulation during the day Sunday in San Diego and Riverside counties, as well as Palm Springs, while in Los Angeles, most of the rainfall was projected to occur overnight, according to the National Weather Service.

Hilary peaked Friday as a Category 4 hurricane with 145 mph winds but by early Sunday it had weakened to Category 1, and it was downgraded to a tropical storm by around 9 a.m. Sunday off the coast of Baja California.

Nevertheless, forecasters said "catastrophic and life-threatening" flooding is likely across a broad region of the southwestern U.S.

Related: Hilary Barrels Toward Inland Empire; Residents Asked to Stay Indoors

Newsom signed an emergency proclamation, was in touch with the White House, and directed the deployment of over 7,500 boots on the ground, including dozens of water rescue teams and high-water vehicles.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said it was coordinating with California officials to provide support as needed. FEMA pre-positioned supplies at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, and a FEMA Incident Management Assistance Team deployed to the California Office of Emergency Services and is prepared to aid with any requests for federal assistance.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass activated the city's Emergency Operations Center at Level 2 — one level short of the most critical status.

"We asked Angelinos to stay inside today,'' Bass said. "The timing of this could become earlier. We know that storms are moving fast so it could change. So please stay at home.''

Large swells generated by Hilary will affect portions of Baja California Peninsula and Southern California over the next few days. The swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.

Forecasters said surf of 4-7 feet is possible at southeast- and south-facing beaches. From Long Beach to Orange County, cities deployed bulldozers to build berms on beaches to protect coastal properties, and sandbags were being provided for residents to protect their properties.

The North County Transit District announced mid-day Sunday that COASTER train service was temporarily suspended until further notice due to the storm. Amtrak and Metrolink have both reduced their service for Sunday in San Diego County.

Los Angeles County officials closed all county parks, buildings and facilities Sunday and Monday.

Legoland, SeaWorld Magic, Mountain and Hurricane Harbor, and Knott's Berry Farm and Knott's Soak City were closed Sunday due to the storm. Disneyland announced it would close at 10 p.m. and California Adventure was set to close at 9 p.m. Universal Studios and Universal CityWalk remained open Sunday morning.

Hilary is expected to remain in the Southland through Monday morning, likely clearing out by early afternoon, with scattered thunderstorms possible Tuesday.

A tropical storm has not made landfall in California since 1939. Meteorologists warned that despite weakening, the storm remained treacherous, and could dump up to 10 inches — a year's worth of rain for some areas — in southern California and southern Nevada.

The U.S. hurricane center posted tropical storm and potential flood warnings for Southern California from the Pacific coast to interior mountains and deserts as far north as eastern Oregon and Idaho.

Western states could be hit with once-in-a-century rains, with a good chance Hilary could break all-time records as the wettest known tropical cyclone to douse Nevada, Oregon and Idaho. Hilary was expected to remain a tropical storm into central Nevada early Monday before dissipating.

The storm wasn't the only act of nature to upend daily life in California Sunday. Southern California got another surprise in the afternoon as an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.1 hit near Ojai, about 80 miles (130 km) northwest of downtown Los Angeles, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It was followed by dozens of aftershocks.

City News Service contributed to this story.

The Associated Press contributed to this story