Daniel Swain for Los Angeles Times —A major wet weather pattern is barreling toward California. But it’s not the dreaded ‘megaflood’

UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain discusses the current wet weather pattern in California for Los Angeles Times, emphasizing that, despite the expected heavy storms, there is no indication of an imminent statewide “megaflood.”

Swain rejects rumors circulating on the internet and affirms that the likelihood of a catastrophic flood event, similar to the Great Flood of 1862, remains very low, stating “There is not currently any indication whatsoever of an extremely severe, statewide, catastrophic flood event, resulting from a multi-week sequence of storms.”

Swain anticipates a potentially high-impact storm pattern this week, following the typical El Niño pattern with a warm atmospheric river and a strong Pacific jet stream