What's the Likelihood of a Hurricane Hitting California?

Last weekend, remnant moisture from what was previously Hurricane Dolores soaked the Southwest and Southern California, which caused major problems and shattered rainfall records.

And while it's not all that uncommon for tropical moisture to make it to California, many have been asking: could a hurricane make landfall on the West Coast?

History shows a hurricane landfall is possible, but if it happened, it would be in Southern California. On Oct. 2, 1858, a hurricane came ashore and caused widespread damage in San Diego. That unnamed hurricane was the last, and only, example on record of a hurricane coming ashore on the West Coast.

In 1939, a tropical storm made landfall along the California coast at Long Beach, according to Weather Underground.

(MORE: The 10 Most Forgotten Hurricanes)

Hurricanes are so unlikely in this region of the country, Dolce says, because a hurricane would have to be moving fast enough over the cold Pacific Ocean waters to stay together and maintain intensity all the way to the coast. It's an extremely rare occurrence – one that hasn't happened in more than 150 years.

Although these tropical systems nearly always fall apart on their way to the shore, a NASA report reminds us that they can remain dangerous systems and pose a threat to life and property regardless of their tropical status and intensity.

"The primary threat from California tropical cyclones isn't winds or storm surge. It's rainfall – sometimes torrential – which has led to flooding, damage and, occasionally, casualties," said the report.

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