Climate Impact Report – 2/13

February 13, 2025

Key Facts Of The Day 2/13

On Thursday, an intense bout of rain will hit a large swath of California, potentially flooding and causing debris flows in areas recently burned by wildfires.
- As of Thursday, more than 36 million people in California are under a level 2 of 4 risk of flooding rainfall.
- On Thursday, a storm will dump 1 to 3 inches of rain over the Los Angeles basin, and totals could approach 6 inches in the area’s mountains — including the burn scar of the Palisades Fire.
- In Malibu, all public schools were closed on Thursday because of the storm.
On Wednesday, a storm brought Chicago its most substantial snowfall so far this winter.
- Schools in the Chicago area closed or shifted to online learning Wednesday in response to the storm.
In Iowa, more than 100 vehicle accidents were reported, and about 185 drivers needed assistance due to the weather conditions.
On Wednesday, more than 1,000 flights into and out of U.S. airports were canceled by the evening, while more than 6,000 experienced delays due to severe winter weather.

On Wednesday, evacuation warnings were issued in parts of Los Angeles County ravaged by deadly wildfires last month due to Southern California’s most significant storm in more than a year.
Los Angeles County recently bolstered storm preparations by cleaning debris basins, installing concrete barriers, and placing sandbags in fire zones to filter debris and protect storm drains.
On Thursday morning, voluntary evacuations were issued in Orange County, California, for several canyon areas near the Airport Fire burn scar.
In Santa Barbara County, the sheriff’s office ordered evacuations in areas in and around the burn scar of the Lake fire.
More than 7,500 feet of concrete barriers and more than 6,500 sandbags have been deployed to areas burned in the Palisades Fire in case of debris flows.

Chocolate is becoming more expensive as disruptive weather patterns fueled by climate change have hammered West Africa, where most of the world’s cacao is grown.
- In 2024, 71% of cacao-producing areas in West Africa experienced an average of 42 days with temperatures above that heat threshold.