an unprecedented storm moving through the Southwest
En el cruce entre la naturaleza y la historia, la tormenta tropical Hilary tocó tierra en California el domingo, convirtiendo paisajes áridos en ríos desbordados y obligando al gobernador Gavin Newsom a declarar el estado de emergencia. San Diego vivió su primera tormenta tropical de esta magnitud, y Los Ángeles enfrentó un evento similar por primera vez desde 1939, recordándonos que los umbrales climáticos que creíamos estables pueden romperse en cuestión de horas. Lo que comenzó como una amenaza en México —cobrando al menos una vida antes de cruzar la frontera— se convirtió en una prueba colectiva para el suroeste de Estados Unidos, donde la lluvia de días equivale a la de un año entero.
- Hilary llegó con una fuerza sin precedentes históricos para California, desbordando calles, autopistas y estadios en cuestión de horas.
- Al menos una persona murió en México antes de que la tormenta cruzara la frontera, y las autoridades advirtieron que el número de víctimas podría aumentar con las inundaciones, tornados y deslizamientos de tierra en curso.
- El Centro Nacional de Huracanes emitió alertas críticas para el sureste de California, el oeste de Arizona, el sur de Nevada y el suroeste de Utah, ampliando la zona de peligro más allá de las costas.
- Miles de efectivos estatales fueron movilizados junto a equipos federales y locales, con evacuaciones ordenadas en el condado de San Bernardino ante torrentes de agua, lodo y escombros.
- La tormenta, ya degradada a ciclón post-tropical, continuaba avanzando hacia el interior, dejando en suspenso el alcance real de los daños y el destino de comunidades enteras.
El domingo, la tormenta tropical Hilary tocó tierra en California y en pocas horas el gobernador Gavin Newsom declaró la emergencia estatal, una declaración que se ampliaría al día siguiente conforme la magnitud del desastre se hacía evidente. La tormenta ya había cobrado al menos una vida en México antes de cruzar la frontera, y ahora azotaba el suroeste estadounidense con lluvias, vientos y escombros que las autoridades calificaron de potencialmente mortales.
El Centro Nacional de Huracanes advirtió sobre inundaciones capaces de causar muertes, tornados en el sureste de California, el oeste de Arizona, el sur de Nevada y el suroeste de Utah, además de deslizamientos de tierra en toda la región. Newsom movilizó miles de efectivos estatales para trabajar junto a equipos federales y locales, posicionando equipos de rescate ante lo que describió como una tormenta sin precedentes.
San Diego vivió algo que nunca había experimentado: una tormenta tropical de esta envergadura. Los Ángeles, por su parte, enfrentó su primer evento similar desde 1939. Videos en redes sociales mostraban calles y autopistas convertidas en ríos, con residentes navegando en botes. En el condado de San Bernardino, la mezcla de agua, lodo, rocas y árboles arrancados de raíz obligó a evacuar varias comunidades.
Las proyecciones de lluvia eran alarmantes: entre 12 y 25 centímetros en zonas montañosas y desérticas, equivalente a lo que esas regiones reciben en un año entero. El Dodger Stadium de Los Ángeles apareció completamente inundado, imagen emblemática del alcance de las aguas. Mientras la tormenta se debilitaba a categoría post-tropical y seguía avanzando hacia el interior, el número de desplazados, la destrucción de infraestructura y la posibilidad de más víctimas permanecían como preguntas sin respuesta.
On Sunday, Tropical Storm Hilary made landfall in California, and within hours the state's governor declared an emergency. By Monday, the declaration had expanded to cover more counties as the full scope of the damage became clear. The storm had already killed at least one person in Mexico before crossing the border, and now it was battering the American Southwest with rain, wind, and debris that authorities warned could be catastrophic and deadly.
The National Hurricane Center issued stark warnings: the storm could produce floods capable of killing people, spawn tornadoes across southeastern California, western Arizona, southern Nevada, and the far southwestern corner of Utah, and trigger mudslides across the region. Governor Gavin Newsom responded by mobilizing thousands of state personnel to work alongside federal and local teams, positioning rescue equipment and personnel in the path of what he called an unprecedented storm.
San Diego County experienced something it had never seen before—a tropical storm of this magnitude. Los Angeles County, meanwhile, faced its first such event since 1939. Videos circulating on social media showed streets and highways transformed into rivers, with residents navigating flooded roads in boats. In San Bernardino County, the combination of water, mud, rocks, and uprooted trees created torrents that forced evacuations from several communities.
The rainfall projections were staggering. Mountain and desert areas across California could receive between 12 and 25 centimeters of rain—an amount equivalent to what those regions typically receive in an entire year, all falling within days. Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles stood completely inundated, a striking image of how far the floodwaters had reached.
By the time the storm weakened to post-tropical status, it was still moving through the Southwest, continuing to threaten communities across multiple states. The emergency response was already underway, but the full extent of the damage—how many people would be displaced, how much infrastructure would be destroyed, whether the death toll would rise—remained uncertain as the system continued its slow march inland.
Citações Notáveis
California has thousands of people on the ground working hand in hand with federal and local personnel to support communities in the path of Tropical Storm Hilary with resources, equipment, and expertise. We are mobilizing the entire government as we prepare for and respond to this unprecedented storm.— Governor Gavin Newsom
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does a tropical storm reaching California matter so much? Doesn't the state deal with heavy rain regularly?
Not like this. San Diego had never experienced a tropical storm before. Los Angeles hadn't seen one since 1939. These systems bring moisture from the ocean that inland areas aren't built to handle—the infrastructure, the drainage, the soil itself.
You mentioned the rainfall equivalent to a year's worth. That's the number everyone focuses on, but what does that actually mean on the ground?
It means the earth can't absorb it. Hillsides that have been dry for months suddenly have water running through them at speed. Soil loses its grip. That's when you get mudslides, when boulders start moving, when entire neighborhoods have to evacuate.
The governor said thousands of people were mobilized. What were they actually doing?
Positioning rescue teams, pre-staging equipment, setting up evacuation routes. They were trying to get ahead of a storm they couldn't stop, placing people where they might be needed before the worst hit.
One death in Mexico, but you don't say much about that. Why?
Because the source material didn't provide details. The storm crossed a border, and that death happened first, but the reporting focused on what was happening in California. That's a limitation of what we know from this moment.
What happens next? Does the story end when the rain stops?
No. The cleanup, the damage assessments, the displaced people—that's when the real story often emerges. Right now we're in the emergency phase. The aftermath will tell us how bad it actually was.