Biden declares emergency for California due to winter storms

[January 09, 2023]  (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for California after a week of storms killed at least 12 people in the past 10 days and knocked out power for hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in the state. 

U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks during a ceremony marking two years since the January 6, 2021, attack on U.S. Capitol, in the East Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., January 6, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

The emergency declaration authorizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to coordinate disaster relief efforts and mobilize emergency resources, the White House said in a statement.

In the last week, severe weather spawned violent wind gusts that toppled trucks, flooded the streets of small towns along northern California's coast and churned up a storm surge that destroyed a pier in Santa Cruz.

(Reporting by Jyoti Narayan in Bengaluru; Editing by Alex Richardson)

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