Winter storm takes Southern California residents by surprise

Over the last few weeks, a momentous winter storm has shocked California residents, leaving many, such as Chapman University commuters, unprepared. Photo by DANIEL PEARSON, staff photographer

Over the past weeks, there have been high warnings of heavy rain and snow for the Southern California region. In Orange County, residents have experienced two to five inches of rainfall.

Areas such as Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties all experienced some snow, while the surrounding areas experienced rain or hail as well. 

One thing that many residents noticed that was different about this storm was how cold the air was and how it projected onto the outcome of the storm, resulting in the extreme weather. 

Thomas Piechota, an environmental science professor at Chapman University with a specialization in water resources, explained why this kind of weather is being seen now.

“These are very concentrated flows of moisture that come from the Pacific Ocean, and when they come from the Pacific Ocean, it aims itself at a very specific location along the west coast,” Piechota told The Panther. “Sometimes it can be in Oregon, (and) sometimes that can be in Northern and Central California. The one that just happened at the end of last week over the weekend was aimed at Southern California and during a cold mass.”

Piechota also mentioned that even though the area is receiving more rainfall and precipitation than normal, it is not enough to put the state out of a drought. It would take many more years of rain to gain enough water to make up for the years of dryness that has been experienced.

Talia Miller, a sophomore psychology major, told The Panther her thoughts about commuting from Mission Viejo during the storm.

“As a Californian, it is difficult driving in the rain because everyone does not know how to drive in any kind of weather,” Miller stated. “Being a commuter, it has been very challenging driving to school with the extreme hail and rain we have been experiencing.”

Kaylee Scott, who is also a sophomore psychology major, shared her thoughts regarding the cold weather.

“It was very fun to experience and play in the ‘controversially-named snow’ because we do not usually see this kind of weather,” Scott told The Panther. “However, it is concerning to be experiencing this kind of storm in March.”