Sierra Nevada Snowpack "Big Melt" Threatens California Communities with Floods

Communities in Colorado are at risk of flooding due to the "Big Melt" of the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada.

A reservoir of water upstream is anticipated to fill to three times its capacity in the upcoming weeks after over a dozen atmospheric rivers deposited epic amounts of rain and snow on California.

Sierra Nevada Snowpack "Big Melt"

About halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, the tree-lined Island District, which includes a school, pistachio orchards, and horse ranches, may soon be cut off by rising rivers or inundated.

Water managers fear that the Sierra Nevada's spring snowmelt will be so tremendous that the Kings River's north fork won't be able to hold it and carry it to the Pacific Ocean. A large portion of the water is also being directed into the south fork of the river, which flows through the vicinity of the unassuming city of Lemoore and fills a sizable basin.

Tulare Lake, the biggest freshwater body west of the Mississippi River, was in that basin more than a century ago. Winter saw it flourish as snowmelt poured from the mountains. Winter saw it flourish as snowmelt poured from the mountains. Currently, Tulare Lake only reemerges in the wettest years, such as this one, covering a sizable expanse of farmland in water.

Floods in California Communities

Today, utility poles, trees, and paved roads rise above the lake's lapping waves as relics of land life that have been put on hold. Underneath are fields where tomatoes, wheat, and other crops are typically grown, NBC Bay Area reports.

The Pine Flat Reservoir, located 50 miles upstream, can hold up to 1 million acre-feet of water, but De Kings River Conservation District predicted that it would receive more than 3 million acre-feet of water this spring due to the melting snow. According to Merritt, authorities were compelled to boost the flow of water leaving the reservoir to make room for more.

For the first time since 1983, Island District residents have reactivated a decades-old network of neighbors to help one another in an emergency. According to Tony Oliveira, a former county supervisor and network administrator, there were no texts or emails the last time the Island Property Protection Association went into action to quickly spread the word.

Through the network, more than 200 people offered to assist neighbors in a single week, and the organization's website received over 4,000 hits.

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Yosemite National Park: Temporarily Closed

This week's rising temperatures have many locals on edge. Yosemite National Park will temporarily close a portion of the park starting on Friday, according to plans made public by park officials, according to AP News. Campground and lodging reservations in the eastern Yosemite Valley will be automatically canceled and refunded.

State climatologist for California, Michael Anderson, stated that although he doesn't anticipate the warming trend to immediately cause flooding in residential areas, water inflows into some reservoirs are anticipated to double.

However, that might alter in the upcoming weeks and months. The worst is probably still to come as more water enters the basin, according to Governor Gavin Newsom, who visited the re-emerged lake on Tuesday.

These difficulties are not new to Kings County, which has 150,000 residents and is located in the productive San Joaquin Valley.

Tulare Lake first appeared again 40 years ago, as many longtime residents can recall. Officials believe crops will remain underwater much longer this time due to the massive snowpack, said Dusty Ference, executive director of the Kings County Farm Bureau, Yahoo News reports.

Related Article: Winter Storm Watch Possible Upgrade to Warning as Snow, Rain, Freezing Temperatures Saturate Colorado