Heavy snowfall in the Golden State saw the famous Yosemite national park closed indefinitely due to travel hazards, while Joshua Tree national park was also shut down due to the “inclement weather,” officials said.
California continues to be hammered by severe weather, with parts of the state blanketed in snow on Thursday as the Southern Plains and other areas faced the threat of “long-lived, intense” tornadoes, forecasters said.
The heavy snowfall in the Golden State prompted the closure of Joshua Tree National Park, with officials citing “inclement weather” in a tweet Wednesday. “Rangers are working on reopening as soon as possible!” they said.
Severe weather had already prompted California’s Yosemite National Park to close last week until Wednesday. However, on Wednesday, the park said it would remain closed amid fresh snowfall, saying there was “no estimated date for reopening.”
Power outages also continued to afflict parts of the state, with more than 80,600 utility customers without power as of early Thursday morning, according to online outage tracker PowerOutage.us.
Meanwhile, a “severe weather outbreak” was expected across parts of the Southern Plains and into areas of Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas and Mississippi.
“Widespread damaging winds, large hail, and tornadoes are all expected,” the National Weather Service said, with “a few long-lived, intense tornadoes” also possible.
The National Weather Service’s Prediction Center said there was a moderate risk of severe thunderstorms over the parts of Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas “with a broader enhanced risk area spread out across inland portions of the Southern Plains and Lower Mississippi Valley.”
“All modes of severe weather will be possible through tonight as a powerhouse of a storm system moves through,” the weather service in Little Rock, Arkansas, said in a tweet in the early hours of Thursday morning. “There is a very real chance of large hail, very strong winds and strong tornadoes. It is imperative that you remain weather alert to and know where to go,” it said, sharing an infographic on where to find shelter in a home during a tornado.
“Quickly move to your basement and bring your emergency supply kit,” the infographic says. “If you have no basement, move to an interior room with no windows.”
The weather service in Little Rock also warned in a separate tweet that “we also need to be concerned with how much water is coming.”
“Several inches of rain has already fallen with more on the way. There remains a moderate chance of flash flooding with flood watches still in effect,” it said.