Governor Gavin Newsom declared a statewide state of emergency on Monday, ordering California agencies to stage flood-fighting gear and highway equipment ahead of what officials warn could be the strongest El Niño winter on record. The move comes as ocean temperatures in the tropical Pacific have already broken records set during the historic 2015-2016 El Niño, months before the current event is even expected to peak.
According to a report from the New York Post, Newsom's office said the emerging El Niño is already breaking records and may become the strongest in recorded history. State officials warned that the coming winter storms could bring flooding, landslides and coastal erosion across California, and said the declaration lets the state mobilize resources before the worst of the season arrives.
The numbers behind that warning are stark. By September 21, ocean temperatures in the core tropical Pacific region reached 3.05 degrees Celsius above baseline averages, surpassing the previous record peak of 3.02 degrees Celsius set in late November 2015, according to The Guardian. Weekly sea surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific had already reached 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit above average in mid-September, officially crossing the threshold for what meteorologists classify as a “very strong” or “super” El Niño, per Fast Company.
NOAA Sees a Coin Flip Toward History
NOAA forecasters have projected a 75% probability that the 2026-2027 El Niño will become the strongest on record dating back to 1950 once it peaks between October and December, according to SURFER Magazine. That kind of probability is what pushed the state to act months ahead of the winter rains rather than waiting for storms to arrive.
Part of the reason ocean levels are already rising along the coast has to do with a phenomenon separate from the storms themselves. Meteorologists reported this month that El Niño-driven Kelvin waves — deep ocean pulses of warm water moving eastward — have already raised sea levels along the California coast, with additional waves expected to heighten winter storm surge and coastal flooding risks, per CBS News.
What the Emergency Order Actually Unlocks
The proclamation speeds permits and contracts for emergency response, according to the CA Office of the Governor.
The order specifically commands the Department of Water Resources to pre-position sandbags, high-capacity pumps, and flood-fighting materials, while directing Caltrans to stage snow-removal and traffic-control machinery along vulnerable highway corridors, the same CBS News report notes. Per the Post's account, Caltrans is preparing road-closure and snow-removal equipment along vulnerable highways, and the California National Guard is being readied to assist with flood response, search-and-rescue operations and logistics if needed.
Coastal Damage Already on the Books
The state order followed local action in Orange County, where an emergency was declared after public-property damage exceeded the $15 million FEMA threshold, according to FOX 11 Los Angeles. Along South Orange County's coast, those swells red-tagged nine homes and yellow-tagged seven others in Dana Point due to compromised seawalls and severe erosion, per Voice of OC.
Farther north, the Post's report describes coastal erosion and flooding risks. Newsom made the emergency announcement as part of the state's broader El Niño preparedness push.
Issuing Recovery Proclamations
Alongside the statewide El Niño order, Newsom issued four separate emergency recovery proclamations for prior storm damage in Glenn, Humboldt, Kern, Mendocino, and Santa Barbara counties and a Lake County sewage spill, per the CA Office of the Governor.
Whether pre-positioned pumps, sandbags and highway crews can blunt severe winter storm damage will likely become clearer once the storms arrive.
