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Los Angeles gets an El Niño task force
File: Rain in downtown Los Angeles on Monday, Oct. 19, 2015.
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National Weather Service
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Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti signed an executive order Friday to create an El Niño task force that will bring together representatives from 13 of the city's departments to make preparations and develop ways to keep citizens safe when weather phenomenon strikes.
El Niño weather is expected to arrive in full force by early next year. The citywide task force will focus on planning for heavy rain, flooding, erosion and debris flow.
"We hope for the best, and we prepare for the worst," Garcetti said Friday. "Here in Los Angeles, we've seen pretty bad storms before. This city is not built to absorb water, it's built to flush it out to the ocean, unfortunately. We're changing that. But, we're in the midst of re-engineering our city. But we are preparing for a very bad El Niño."
The city also signed an agreement with major cell phone companies to share their networks in the aftermath of an emergency. It's also contracted with two national companies for disaster recovery if the city's resources are exhausted.
Garcetti wants Angelenos to register for emergency alerts by cell phone and email. You can sign up and find out more information to get prepared at ElNinoLA.com.
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