7 inches of rain just on Sunday destroyed one bridge and damaged another on Interstate 10

In light of the damage, some outside engineers warned that the California Department of Transportation may need to adopt tougher design and protection standards for highway bridges, particularly with abnormally heavy rains possible in the coming months because of the ocean-warming phenomenon known as El Nino.

Flooding touched off by unusually intense rainfall of nearly 7 inches Sunday washed away boulders and soil under an elevated portion of Interstate 10 near the town of Desert Center, about 50 miles from the Arizona state line, causing the collapse of the eastbound side of the bridge and severely weakening the westbound side.

end partial quote from:

Flood damage to California bridges worse than suspected

California is known sometimes to get up to 16 inches of rain in 3 days. So, with El Nino Coming and as big an El Nino as this is shaping up we could potentially get more rain than even that some places in California over a 3 day period this fall, winter, or spring.