Rain Soaked During the Rose Parade in California, and Snow Squalls Hit the Midwest and Northwest on the First Day of 2026
- Wanjiru Waweru
- 5 hours ago
- 2 min read
Wanjiru Waweru, Jadetimes Contributor
W. Waweru is a Jadetimes News Reporter Covering America News
Los Angeles, California – Rain steamed down on the legendary Rose Parade on Thursday (January 1) for the first time in 20 years as flood warnings and evacuation arrangements in Southern California participated in the snow squalls and frigid temperatures in the country’s midsection on New Year’s Day.
Marching bands, floats, and throngs of spectators were marinated by one to two inches of New Year’s Day rain at the 137th Rose Parade in Pasadena. The mercury rose to a chilly 58 degrees Fahrenheit at 8 am at the beginning of the parade.
Beyond the country, in New York City, hats and gloves were mandatory as noisemakers at the city’s New Year’s Eve ball drop, where temperatures were almost freezing, materialized to be chilly in a decade.
Hundreds of thousands of people assembled along almost the six-mile route in Pasadena, where the two-hour parade started. Millions of Viewers watched on local television. Arranger at the Pasadena Tournament of Roses, the group that arranges the parade preceding of Rose Bowl college football game, stated that they suggested only a small adaptation to address the weather, including the tops being on convertibles holding grand marshal Earvin “Magic” Johnson, and other VIPs.
Rain forecasts for the Rose Parade, which had recently dry for two decades, nourished the entire week. On Thursday, the National Weather Service addressed the flood incident for all of California counties, and a coastal flood advisory through Sunday afternoon along the Pacific Coast close San Francisco.
In New York City, the sunlight emerged from Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s inaugural celebration; however, other areas of the Northeast and Midwest were struck by an Alberta clipper storm sweeping an Arctic front that provided snow squalls and high winds.
Conditions are diverse extensively – from snow showers to heavier squalls – from Wisconsin through northern Illinois and Michigan and into northern New Jersey, southeastern New York, and New England.
Throughout the quarter, a quarter of flights were late at both San Diego International Airport and Boston Logan, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware.
