rains

The worst of the winds were expected across Northern California Wednesday, though forecasters said their primary concern remained the amount and duration of the rains that were also expected to begin in earnest Wednesday.

"The soil is compacted, there's asphalt over them and when it rains, the water runs off into the gutters instead of into the soil."

Heavy rains, typhoons, and hurricanes have led to serious flooding in places around the world.

It has warned of a "life-threatening storm surge", heavy rains and severe winds, and hundreds of thousands of people had been evacuated ahead of the storm's arrival,

But in 2019, extreme rains brought a deluge that engulfed villages, grasslands and forests.