1. THE GREAT SOLSTICE WINTER STORM OF 2010 RAIN FALLING FROM SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA TO BAKERSFIELD December 19-21, 2010 Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Disaster Reduction, University of North Carolina, USA

2. The Great Solstice Winter Storm of 2010 was one for the record books, a once in a hundred years event, marked by the most rainfall ever to fall in the month of December and the 4th heaviest daily rainfall (on Sunday) of all time.

3. PACIFIC STORMS BRING HEAVY RAIN, FLOODING AND ROCKFALLS/MUDFLOWS TO CALIFORNIA

4. WINTER ARRIVED AT 3:38 PM ON TUESDAY, DEC. 21 Historic rainfall brought much of California into a state of emergency with widespread flooding affecting many people just before Christmas.

5. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA DRENCHED WITH UP TO 20 CM Los Angeles received one- fourth of its annual rainfall (nearly 10 cm (4 in )) in 3 days.

6. WINTER STORM HITS CA: DEC 20, 2010

7. ROCKSLIDE A rockslide triggered by the prolonged heavy rainfall closed the Pacific Coast Highway in both directions at the Ventura-L.A. county line.

8. 1 m (3 ft) OF WATER IN KERN CITY, CA: DEC 20, 2010

9. FLOODING CREATES CHAOS: DEC 20, 2010

10. From Friday (17 th ) through midday on Monday (20 th ), Bakersfield was drenched with 3.79 in. of rain, which is 5 times the normal amount for an entire December and 58% of a normal year’s rainfall.

11. The flooding, mud slides, falling rocks, crested creeks and downed trees created havoc in the Bakersfield area and led to the declaration of a local emergency.