California Water Agencies Scramble to Capture Rare Rainfall While Plant Prevents Sewage Overflow Disaster

As an intense atmospheric river dumped record rainfall across Southern California this week, water agencies swiftly sprung into action to collect the rare downpour while a major sewage plant barely avoided catastrophe.

The welcome yet extreme deluge pushed infrastructure to its breaking point, testing facilities struggling to balance supply needs with environmental protections.

How Much Rain Did California Get?

The powerful storm delivered over 5 inches of rain in some areas in just a couple of days – meeting almost an entire year’s worth of precipitation in one shot from the heavens above. Water managers rejoiced at the sight of overflowing reservoirs and surging rivers, even as communities braced for floods. Every drop was desperately needed in the drought-ravaged Golden State.

Dozens of reservoirs and spreading basins around the region were positioned to intercept as much runoff as possible before it simply flowed out to sea forever. In Los Angeles County alone, enough stormwater was salvaged to meet the demands of over 65,000 residents for twelve whole months.