Crews work to clear mud and debris from California roads after Storm Hilary
Storm Hilary dumped a year’s worth of rain on Death Valley in a single day – its wettest 24 hours on record - after causing dangerous flooding, major mudslides and power outages across California.
Hilary was the first tropical storm to hit California in almost a century and deluged cities including Los Angeles and San Diego before moving north into Nevada.
In Cathedral City, near Palm Springs, rescuers drove a bulldozer through mud to rescue elderly residents from a swamped care home.
Hilary has since prompted flood watches and warnings in half a dozen states. The threat of flooding was highest across southeastern Oregon and into the west-central mountains of Idaho, according to forecasters, with potential thunderstorms and localised torrential rains on Tuesday.
Texas is now also preparing for flash flooding, strong winds and dangerous conditions including possible tornadoes, as Tropical Storm Harold barrels towards the state on Tuesday morning.
Tropical Depression Nine – which formed in the Gulf of Mexico on Monday afternoon – has strengthened into a tropical storm bringing with it heavy rain and high-force wind.
