California Rains Spread Fear

It wasn't so long ago that the Santa Anna winds blew the wildfires all around Santa Barbara and other places, destroying all the trees and ground cover and many homes. Now the homes that are left are in danger of mudslides. When there is nothing to hold the ground from slipping, it will. Those people living near the areas that were scarred by recent wildfires are sandbagging around their homes. In some places they were urged to leave their homes on Tuesday as a storm approaching from the Pacific brought a threat of floods and mudslides.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzeneger ordered state agencies to prepare to aid local organizations in case of disaster. He said that the state stands ready to help local governments protect lives and property. There is a low-pressure area about 700 miles off the coast that was heading northeast and could bring an inch of rain through Thanksgiving and up to 4 inches in the mountains.

Central American Braces for Floods

Heavy rain from the remnants of Hurricane Felix has been falling Honduras and Nicaragua, threatening to trigger flooding and mudslides. The storm has weakened as it passes over land but US forecasters warn the rain could produce life threatening flash floods. Hurricane Felix hit land in northeast Nicaragua as a category five hurricane, the maximum strength.