# El Niño hits California with climate crisis

> California faces record heat and floods from El Niño, climate change intensifies risks.
- Title: El Niño hits California with climate crisis · Sfchronicle
- Summary: California faces record heat and floods from El Niño, climate change intensifies risks. El Niño weather extremes in California, worsened by climate change…
- Keywords: el nino, california, climate change, santa barbara, heat waves, flooding, school air conditioning, virtual power plant, coastal erosion, news, local, Niño
- Source: Sfchronicle — https://sfchronicle.com/opinion/openforum/article/el-nino-climate-change-california-22475351.php
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: el nino, california, climate change, santa barbara, heat waves, flooding, school air conditioning, virtual power plant, coastal erosion, news, local
## Tropical Storm Rachel hits Southern California
Homes teetered in Long Beach after Tropical Storm Rachel flooded streets and damaged the boardwalk.

> Storms like Rachel rarely make it to shore in Southern California.
## El Niño intensifies climate extremes
El Niño, the strongest in a thousand years, is causing record heat and flooding across California.

> It may just be the strongest in a thousand years.
## California heat waves hit 100 degrees
Temperatures in October reached 100 degrees, 22 degrees above normal, with ocean temperatures 10 degrees warmer.

> The ocean has felt more like the Caribbean.
## Schools struggle with extreme heat
Over 4,000 schools assessed heating and cooling systems, but fewer than 200 got funding to replace them.

> Kids have been sitting in classrooms with temperatures topping 100 degrees and getting sent home early.
## Virtual power plant underfunded
The virtual power plant, supplying energy as much as a gas plant, was not adequately funded by Governor Newsom.

> More than 200,000 households send power from their home batteries back to the grid, together supplying as much energy as a gas plant.
## Wet winter forecast for California
San Diego and Santa Barbara are projected to get 263% and 226% of normal rainfall from December through March.

> The Bay Area isn’t spared either: San Francisco and San Jose are projected to see nearly double their usual rainfall totals.
## 1997 El Niño caused massive damage
Santa Barbara received nearly 2 feet of rain in February 1998, causing landslides and home destruction.

> Landslides closed Highways 101 and 154, and mudslides destroyed homes up and down the South Coast.
## Coastal erosion worsens with rising seas
Beaches in Southern California are eroding at 76% above normal levels, with rising seas making storms more destructive.

> Scientists project that up to two-thirds of Southern California’s beaches could be gone by 2100.
## Key takeaway

El Niño weather extremes in California, worsened by climate change, threaten schools, power grids, and coastal areas.