Still recovering from a powerful atmospheric river system that caused widespread flooding and power outages and led to at least two deaths, Northern California is again bracing for another severe storm.
The Sacramento area started to see early signs of recovery Monday after a New Year’s Eve storm breached levees, overflowed rivers and triggered evacuations across the region. But light rain returned in the afternoon, and another strong storm on the horizon stood to create similar, if not worse, conditions.
South Sacramento County residents in Point Pleasant were still under an evacuation order on Monday, while those in Wilton — where the Cosumnes River flooded homes and roadways were advised to shelter in place. Thousands of customers across Sacramento were still without electricity as the Sacramento Municipal Utility District worked to restore damaged power lines.
The National Weather Service issued a flood watch from Wednesday morning through early Friday for the Sacramento region, citing heavy rain that could inundate rivers and creeks and make low-lying roadways impassable. Up to 3 inches of rain is expected in the valley, as well as wind gusts reaching as high as 40 miles per hour, according to the National Weather Service. The mountaintops of northern Sierra Nevada could see as much as four feet of new snow.
The storm is expected to roll through the region as residents and officials are still scrambling to recoup from the atmospheric river storm that blasted the region on New Year’s Eve.
Floodwaters across the region receded on Monday, allowing officials to reopen two hard-hit south Sacramento County roadways, Highway 99 and Dillard Road. The two were deemed unsafe and impassable over the weekend when a levee breached and the Cosumnes River overflowed.
Crews on Monday were still working to clear downed trees and debris from the sides of the roads, as well as tow vehicles that were abandoned or swept away during the intense wind and rain.
California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Leavitt had little concern that Monday’s “quick-hitting” storm system would create new issues but he wasn’t as optimistic about the storm brewing later in the week.
“For now, we’re OK,” he said, “but it all depends on how much it’s going to rain.”
A repeat of the New Year’s Eve storm?
The Saturday night storm knocked out power to nearly 200,000 homes in the Sacramento region and stranded dozens of drivers on south Sacramento County roads as the storm pushed the Cosumnes and Mokelumne rivers past their brinks. It also claimed two lives.
California State Parks on Saturday reported that a 72-year-old man died when a tree fell on him at Lighthouse Field State Beach in Santa Cruz. Then, Sacramento County authorities on Sunday morning found a person dead in a car submerged in floodwaters off Dillard Road near Highway 99 in Sacramento County.
Ahead of Wednesday’s storm system, officials are urging residents to be cautious and stay alert.
“Trees don’t take as much wind speed to fall when the ground is saturated,” said Scott Rowe, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “Like anything else, be prepared. Be extra mindful of where you are.”
Sacramento County spokesman Matt Robinson advised residents to avoid driving through any standing water in the days ahead.
“People need to remember, it floods quickly and recedes slowly,” he said. “We encourage residents to be safe and don’t take any chances.”
South Sacramento County prepares for more heavy rain
For some in rural, south Sacramento County, the consequences of the New Year’s Eve storm were still present on Monday.
An evacuation order for residents in Point Pleasant and a shelter-in-place order for those in Wilton remained in effect on Monday as some roads in the area were still inundated with water.
Point Pleasant Resident Linda Bloom was dragging 10-foot branches from her front yard to a burn barrel on Monday afternoon when the rain started back up.
She had stayed up all night Sunday after a mandatory evacuation order was issued for the surrounding area, packing medicine and pulling her truck up to the main house next to her addition to transport her elderly neighbor. But the order was never extended to Kestrel Lake Road, where Bloom lives, so she stayed put for the time being.
Asked if Wednesday’s storm concerned her, she said, “not yet.”
“It depends on how much rain we get today, and there’s supposed to be a little break (Tuesday), so we have to keep an eye on (the flooding) to see how much it recedes,” she said.
Nearby on Franklin Boulevard, the bases of hundreds of Mike Lozado’s walnut trees were submerged in water.
A little pooling happens every year and shouldn’t be much of an issue, Lozado said, but sustained seepage could cause fungus and leave fewer nuts to be sold to wholesalers.
“If (the water) goes away fast, it doesn’t do much. But if it stays around, it could cause problems,” Lozado said.
There wasn’t much Lozado or his farm manager could do to keep the orchard from flooding, he said. So he made the best of the situation and pulled out his kayak for a boat trip through the trees — an expedition he decided to document on Facebook.
Marilee Eldridge blocked off her garage on Pleasant Point Road with sandbags and was planning to put some around her chickens. Outside of that, though, she didn’t have many other precautions to take before Wednesday’s storm.
“We’ve done everything we can,” Eldridge said while out for a walk with her golden retriever, Abby. “The only thing I’m worried about now is if the garbage man is going to make it to me.”
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