Schafer Dam News Today

Snowmelt will speed up over the five-day period ending April 26, climate scientists predict.

A record-breaking spring snowmelt is being forecast for the southern Sierra Nevada watersheds that feed rivers flowing into the Tulare Lake Basin, bringing with it the potential for “severe flooding” of farmland and communities in Kings and western Tulare counties.

Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux has reduced some evacuation orders to warnings near the Tule River.

Founded as a labor camp for agricultural workers, the small community of Pajaro has long languished in the shadow of nearby Watsonville.

The flood damage is still being tallied throughout Tulare County, while another series of storms is just hours away from hitting the Central Valley.

Days after the rain stopped, communities across Central California, including Porterville and Visalia, are still under evacuation orders and flood warnings.

LOS ANGELES — Days after the latest heavy storm passed through, rising waters are continuing to spur evacuation orders and flood warnings across Central California — and still more rain

Late Tuesday night, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office ordered around 100 residences downstream of Success Lake's Schafer Dam to evacuate.

The southern Sierra now has the largest snowpack in recorded history (as measured by snow water equivalent). Not just for March 15, but at any time.

After record snow in the San Bernardino mountains, rain has caused much of it to melt, with some flooding and rockslides.