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New Normal

Floodwaters submerge a car in Merced.
Floodwaters submerge a car in Merced. Photo: Noah Berger (AP)

The storms come after a summer of particularly dry conditions in California as much of the West continued to suffer through a historic drought. The boomerang between severely dry and severely wet is a sign of climate change: a 2018 study found that climate change is likely to create “winter whiplash,” as the pendulum swings wildly between extremes and the concept of “average” becomes foreign.