It isn’t often that Daps Magic covers the weather, especially in Southern California. However, it appears that now is one of the rare times that it is happening. Currently, Hurricane Hilary is making its way up the west coast of Mexico. It is expected to deluge Southern California with wind, rain, and heavy waves on Sunday and Monday.
At this point, forecasters are predicting that there will be hit with tropical storm-force winds (39-73 mph) and heavy rain. Currently, Tropical Storm Hilary is expected to gain hurricane strength by 1:00 PM on Thursday when it is off the coast of Mainland Mexico. By Saturday at 1:00 AM it is expected to be a major (Category 3 or above) hurricane. It is expected that the storm will lose steam by Sunday and by 1:00 PM it will be a lesser hurricane or tropical storm.
Currently here is what the National Hurricane Center is projecting for Hilary:
A recorded storm has never hit California before as a hurricane and only three storms have hit California as a tropical storm. Those three were:
- 1939 – Long Beach
- 1976 – Kathleen
- 1997 – Nora
While full on tropoical storms or hurricanes generally don’t reach California, the rain has from remnants of tropical storms and hurricanes have drenched the state before. Sometimes this has led to damage or loss of life. Most recently in 2022 the remnants of Hurricane Kay caused the death of one person in San Bernadino County when they were caught in debris flow caused be excessive rain.
At this point the National Weather Service is projecting wind gusts that could be as much as 40-60 mph Monday in Southern California. Wind damage is not the major concern, however. The bigger concern is the deluge of rain that could come with this storm. This could lead to flooding. Currently there is a slight risk of flash flooding but it is expected to become moderate or high risk if the storm continues to track toward Southern California.
Daps Magic will continue to follow the trend lines for this storm and provide updates as they become available. For those who are visiting the Disneyland Resort this weekend and early next week, be ready to get wet. It appears that rain could arrive on Sunday with the weather getting stormier on Monday. This is all contingent, however, on how Hilary tracks in the coming days.
Follow Daps Magic for updates on the impact of Hurricane Hilary on the Disneyland Resort and the surrounding area.
