Winter storms cause at least 4 fatalities, widespread damage across California

Powerful winter storms had left at least four people dead and caused widespread damage across the U.S. state of California over the Christmas holiday week. Governor Gavin Newsom on Christmas Eve declared a state of emergency for six counties, namely Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego and Shasta.

This legal declaration allowed the state government to deploy more resources and the state to seek federal assistance to manage the situation. Authorities have advised people to avoid traveling in the mountains and to stay away from areas that were recently burned by wildfire.