How California's weather catastrophe turned into a miracle [View all]

This is some fantastic news. Now if we could just break this frikkin' heat wave!

How California’s weather catastrophe turned into a miracle
Gushing waterfalls, swollen lakes and snow-covered mountaintops transformed the state’s arid landscapes.

FRESNO, Calif. — Californians were preparing for another year of unrelenting drought in 2023. Instead, they got months of incessant rain and some of the heaviest snowfall they have ever seen.

They feared blasts of spring warmth would quickly turn snow into floods, adding to the havoc from a series of winter storms. But, until recently, temperatures remained mercifully cool, allowing for a slow and steady melt.

The result: A return of water to California that has erased drought maps, poured into long-dry irrigation systems and raised expectations that, after months with water bursting from their gates, reservoirs will end the summer melt filled to capacity.

It has been a stark transformation, with arid landscapes and trickling rivers replaced with swollen lakes, gushing waterfalls and snow-covered mountaintops. Instead of pumping groundwater to keep crops alive, farmers have access to brimming canals carrying more water than they could use.

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