Why This Matters
Hilary would be the first tropical storm in decades to threaten San Diego and Southern California if it makes landfall.
As Hurricane Hilary charts its path toward Southern California, I’m facing another first in my career as a journalist: planning severe storm coverage in San Diego.
I thought I left hurricanes behind when I moved to California from South Carolina, but here we are.
Hilary is an unusual storm to threaten our region – the last tropical storm to make landfall here was in 1939 – and it calls for an unusual approach from our team. We want you to know what to expect from us.
We’re a newsroom primarily focused on investigative and accountability reporting, not breaking news. And we plan to keep that mission in mind this weekend as we monitor the storm and its impacts closely.
We’ll watch for emergencies in communities across San Diego and Imperial counties, especially those that get the least amount of coverage where heavy rainfall and winds could cause the most damage. We’ll keep in touch with public agencies and monitor the response from local governments and aid groups.
Over the coming days, you may hear from us a lot or you may not, depending on the severity of the storm. When the storm clears, we will aggressively pursue stories on the storm’s impact and aftermath and the response from local, state and federal governments.
In the meantime, we’ll look for your tips about what’s going on in your communities. Feel free to drop us a line by using our storm form below and shared on social media. You can also reach us through our “Get Help” feature on our website. We’ll be here.
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