Pittsburg man Damond Lazenby Jr. disappeared Jan. 1 after his green Volkswagen was found abandoned with its engine running near a Highway 4 overpass at Port Chicago Highway in Concord.

After family members reported his absence, they marshalled multiple search parties to canvass roadways around the region up to Jan. 7, when Lazenby’s body was found on an embankment near the shoulder of eastbound Hwy. 4 between Port Chicago Highway and Willow Pass Road.

On Monday, the CHP’s Golden Gate Division posted a statement to social media saying that investigators believe Damond Lazenby Jr. was struck by the right front part of a dark-colored sedan whose driver fled the scene.

Investigators have yet to share additional details about Lazenby’s death, pending results of an autopsy.

Anyone with information may call the CHP’s 24/7 tip line at 707-917-4491.

Contact George Kelly at 408-859-5180.

For this point in the water year — which starts in October — the totals are around twice the average at many Bay Area spots. November was drier than normal, and December brought about double the average rainfall.

The totals below are from Dec. 1 to Jan. 16 at National Weather Service stations.

The site of the greatest reading, Uvas Canyon, is at 1,100 feet elevation near the Casa Loma fire station, about 2 miles east of Loma Prieta.

To the south, Mining Ridge, at 3,288 feet elevation in Big Sur, has recorded 84.16 inches from Dec. 1 to this week.

Read more: 35 key figures that sum up the atmospheric river blitz

National Weather Service predictions showed calm, chilly air Tuesday in the Bay Area. Highs in the mid-50s were consistent throughout, with San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland each expected to top out at 55 degrees. Overnight temperatures could drop to the mid-30s, however, accompanied by calm winds and a dry, rainless night.

Those showers should diminish by Thursday, however, as temperatures were forecast to drop to highs in the low 50s before slowly rising to the high 50s by Saturday, giving the Bay Area its first completely dry weekend of 2023.

The Oregon school’s resume included a win over Bronny James’ Sierra Canyon-Chatsworth team and another over Texas powerhouse Duncanville, both at a big tournament in Oregon last month.

The team’s best player, point guard Jackson Shelstad, is headed to the University of Oregon.

Monday, at its annual MLK Classic, De La Salle ignored the hoopla and played its game. When it ended, the home team’s students stormed the court to celebrate a most memorable 63-53 victory.

Leo Ricketts, a 5-foot-10 guard, played like big red. The junior with bushy red hair buried four 3-pointers on his way to 17 points.

Alec Blair added 14 points and made Shelstad work for everything he got.

Evan Wells chipped in with 10 points.

And the team as a whole played textbook basketball down the stretch as it put away a game that was tied at halftime and De La Salle led by only a point through three quarters.

“I think we can play with anyone,” Ricketts said after being named the player of the game. “Our team, for sure, has the talent. I know we’ve put in the work. I am really confident in what we’ve done as a group.”

De La Salle didn’t match West Linn’s resume, one that included a 17-point rout of Sierra Canyon in December. Just last week, the Concord school lost an East Bay Athletic League game at Monte Vista.

The victory Monday improved De La Salle’s record to 15-4.

West Linn held De La Salle in check through the first quarter, which ended with the visitors ahead 11-5.

But Ricketts came off the bench to ignite the Spartans in the second quarter, scoring eight points in the period as De La Salle went to the locker room tied 25-25.

“He’s a really good shooter,” De La Salle coach Marcus Schroeder said. “He had been struggling a little bit right before this game. He came in and he kind of changed the game. He totally did.”

The visitors immediately surged in front to start the second half as Shelstad nailed a 3-pointer and Sam Leavitt followed with another to make it 31-25.

Ricketts’ 3-pointer cut the margin to 37-36 and Blair scored in the paint to put De La Salle in front, 38-37.

Another 3-pointer by Ricketts broke a 42-42 tie.

De La Salle held the lead the rest of the way to ignite a celebration on the court and in the locker room, which was soaked with water after the team was done.

“I watched on film and was like, ‘We can play with these guys. I know we can,’” Schroeder said. “They’ve got a couple of really, really good players and they have really good players around them. But I knew if we executed on both ends of the court, we could be in the game.

“Obviously, it helps to be on the home court. All that stuff matters. Our students were awesome. The fans were awesome. We executed enough and we made shots, the second half especially.”

Shelstad led West Linn (13-1) with 20 points. Adrian Mosley had 17 points and Sam Leavitt finished with 12.

As big as the victory was for De La Salle, it has little time to enjoy it.

The Spartans — ranked third by the Bay Area News Group — return to EBAL play on Wednesday at home against second-ranked San Ramon Valley, which had started 15-1 before losing close league games last week to No. 1 Dougherty Valley and No. 7 California.

“I told the guys we’ve got a huge game Wednesday night,” Schroeder said. “They’re really good. They had a tough start. Played two really good teams, one at home, one on the road. We’ve got to be ready to go. It will be a battle.”

— Berkeley Humane

Yoda, I am. Like the infamous grand master of Jedi Order, I believe size matters not. Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you?

— EBSPCA

Meet Chopper, a sweet senior looking for a new home. This low-key, laid-back low-rider has one walk speed: leisurely. The only time he breaks into a trot is when he spies a cat, and then he quickly stops to watch from a distance. Chopper ignores other dogs in his vicinity. He just wants to sniff, nap and get your attention and treats! Chopper’s big noggin is made to lie in a lap and be petted. He can be your shop dog, your couch potato, wherever you need a mature lovebug to brighten your day. Chopper weighs 53 pounds, and we estimate his age to be around 8. To meet this pet at Friends of the Alameda Animal Shelter (FAAS), call 510-337-8565 or visit alamedaanimalshelter.org/adopt online.

— FAAS

Tink is the sweetest little girl, born in her foster mom’s living room the day after her mother was rescued from an overcrowded residence. She was the tiniest of the litter and is the last of her family to find a home. Our tortie is initially quite shy, needing a little time to warm up and realize you’re not a predator, but once she does, look out! To meet our purr monster and lap sitter, contact Kay at kericksonttt@yahoo.com. Community Concern for Cats (CC4C) now holds weekend adoption events at Pet Food Express stores in Martinez and Concord plus our regular location at 1250-H Newell Ave. in Walnut Creek. Visit communityconcernforcats.org online for more information.

— CC4C

Finn is an extra-special ginger girl! Most ginger cats are male, and just a special few are female. Female ginger cats are well known to have calm and quiet personalities, and that’s Finn to a T! Finn is a people lover, lap lover, nap lover and playtime lover. Contact the staff at Milo Point Richmond for assistance at 220 S. Garrard Blvd. in Richmond from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. any day but Tuesdays. Our dedicated staff is on duty every day caring for our animals and have saved more than 39,000 lives in 28 years. For more details, visit milofoundation.org/contact-us.

— Milo Foundation

Mama Lana is a 1½-year-old domestic longhair beauty with a great personality and curly, fluffy tail. She loves people and will happily snuggle on your lap, purring away. But wait. Then there’s the Lana that gets the zoomies, flying around the house and playing with toys. She gets along with other cats and would make a great addition to your family. For more information about this or any other adoptable pets with the Contra Costa (CCSPCA), call Pat at 925-323-0667.

— CCSPCA

As stormy skies returned Friday, California officials said that the relentless rains that have eased years of punishing drought have come at a terrible cost, already ranking among the Golden State’s deadliest natural disasters — with more rain on the way.

“We’ve now experienced multiple large and damaging storm systems and there are more on the way,” California Office of Emergency Services Director Nancy Ward said in a Friday news briefing. “We’ve experienced destructive flooding of homes and infrastructure, levee breaches and overtopping, mudslides hurricane force winds in many of our communities, and even had a tornado touch down in Northern California. But let me emphasize, we are not out of the woods yet. The threat to communities remains, and waters will continue to rise even after these storms have passed.”

David Lawrence, a meteorologist and emergency response specialist with the National Weather Service Western Region Headquarters, added that over the last 18 days, the state has seen a statewide average of just over 9 inches of rainfall.

“That is a remarkable number,” Lawrence said. “Some locations have seen their average annual rainfall already occur in just the last 18 days.”

Lawrence said that while the weather service did not expect Friday’s downpours “to be overly significant,” another set of storms arriving Saturday “will bring widespread heavy rainfall in some locations, very heavy mountain snowfall as well, in addition to gusty winds up to 50 to 60 mph.”

“Not only could that rain produce additional flooding — and certainly we’ll see some major impacts to travel in the mountains — but those winds could also blow over trees and bring additional power outages,” Lawrence said. “We do see an additional one or two storm systems for early next week before hopefully we do finally get at least a very brief break in the weather toward the latter portions of next week.”

Authorities ticked off the statewide toll to date from the remarkable deluges since Christmas that have fallen on a state that had been parched after a series of dry winters.

• 6,000 Californians under evacuation order
• More than 20,000 still without electric power
• More than 60 major road closures, at least 32 of which are ongoing
• Seven waterways still under watch for major flooding
• Emergency declarations in 41 of California’s 58 counties
• 19 confirmed deaths — a figure that would rise to 20 if a 5-year-old boy missing since being swept away by floodwaters Monday in the San Luis Obispo County town of San Miguel isn’t found alive.

“These storms are amongst the most deadly natural disasters in the modern history of our state,” Ward said.

Authorities urged people to avoid travel over the three-day Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend, heed precautions and not drive over flooded roadways.

Ward said her office is coordinating with authorities in Monterey, Santa Cruz and Merced counties “whose regions we expect to continue to be vulnerable to these next two or three storm systems, and to include the possibility of a complete cutoff of the Monterey Peninsula.

Monterey County communications coordinator Maia Carroll said Friday the Salinas River already flooded rural roads farm fields near Chualar, causing temporary closures Thursday.

But it will remain a threat through the weekend to potentially flood and close access to Highway 68 between Salinas and Monterey and other major roadways, possibly even Highway 1. If all those roadways have to be closed, the Monterey Peninsula, home to some 54,000 people in Monterey, Pacific Grove, Carmel and Pebble Beach, could be isolated, perhaps for days. Carroll said ambulances and other emergency equipment have been positioned on both sides of areas where roads might have to close just in case.

“It depends on Mother Nature when we can exhale,” Carroll said.

Cindy Messer, lead deputy director at the California Department of Water Resources, said the Salinas is one of seven rivers and waterways under flood watch around the state. Others include the Sacramento River at Ord Ferry, the Navarro River at Navarro in Mendocino County, the Russian River in Guerneville, Bear Creek at McKee Road in Merced, and the San Joaquin River.

The silver lining, Messer said, is the relentless downpours have eased the state’s withering drought. Overall, statewide reservoir levels remain at about 75% of their average for this time of year, she said. That’s because the largest reservoirs were so low they take a lot of water to fill.

Lake Oroville was at about 47% of its full capacity, Shasta Lake at about 42% of its capacity, Folsom Lake at 42% of its capacity and lastly San Luis reservoir at 40% of its capacity.

“We’ve had an amazing amount of rainfall,” she said.

Six-hour rain totals from the National Weather Service as of noon Friday showed just under half of an inch had fallen in San Francisco and San Mateo between 6 a.m. and 12 p.m. Oakland received one-quarter of an inch, and Walnut Creek had one-third. A one and one-half inch downpour occurred over the Santa Cruz Mountains while San Jose was virtually dry with just one-tenth of an inch.

Here are the past 6 hour precip totals for this morning #CAwx pic.twitter.com/4oEfsWfY2b

— NWS Bay Area (@NWSBayArea) January 13, 2023

The weather service projected between a quarter and one-half of an inch of new rain in San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland on Friday night. On the coast in places such as Half Moon Bay and Pacifica, forecasts showed half of an inch of rain paired with wind gusts reaching 30 mph. Projections were lower in the East Bay, with Livermore and Walnut Creek expected to reach no more than one-quarter inch of rain Friday night.

Weather service meteorologist Eleanor Dhuyvetter said Saturday is a bigger concern, but those storms aren’t expected to be among the strongest the Bay Area has seen in the new year.

Even so, “with things just so saturated right now, it really doesn’t take much for some of the flooding issues, and that’s kind of the impacts we’re seeing.”

Saturday forecasts called for wind gusts up to 30 miles per hour and an inch of rainfall in downtown San Jose. In Oakland, rain totals could be as high as one inch with 24 mph winds, and San Francisco could see three-quarters of an inch with 21 mph gusts.

Sunday could be even more moderate, with no more than one-quarter of an inch expected in urban centers. But the rain was predicted to linger, with forecasts showing wet conditions lasting into Thursday.

Power outages, many caused by falling trees, were still afflicting thousands of customers in Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties. Tracking site poweroutage.us Friday afternoon showed 3,665 out in Santa Cruz County and 1,589 in Santa Clara County.

Caltrans closed highway 92 in both directions from highway 35 to Pilarcitos Creek Road Thursday after a massive sinkhole opened up. As of Friday, there was no estimated time of reopening for the key roadway.

On Friday night, Santa Clara County staff issued new evacuation warnings to watershed areas near the Uvas Reservoir, Pacheco Pass River Basin and intersection of Highway 101 and Bolsa Road “due to the weather conditions and potential risks of flooding to the general public and property.”

Those areas under evacuation warning risk include Pacheco Pass River Basin for those living in the areas of:

• El Toro Road south of Highway 152 to Bloomfield Avenue
• Lovers Lane between Shore Road and Highway 152

Watershed Areas of the Uvas Reservoir including those living:

• South of Uvas Reservoir including Thousand Trails RV Park and Uvas Pines RV Park
• South of Sycamore Drive and Watsonville Road
• Homes south of Lions Peak
• South of Day Road and Geri Lane
• Watsonville and Highway 152

Highway 101 and Bolsa Road:

• South of Hwy 152, East of Highway 101
• South of Pacheco Pass (Highway 152) and east of Highway 101
• South of Luchessa Avenue and east of Thomas Road
• East of Santa Teresa Boulevard to Castro Valley Road
• North of Castro Valley Road to Luchessa Avenue
• North of Highway 25 between Highway 101 & Bloomfield Road
• West of Bloomfield Avenue between Highway 25 and Pacheco Pass (Highway 152)
• East of Highway 101 to Pacheco Pass (Highway 152)

Residents and visitors “should gather their household members, pets, personal items, important documents, prescription medication, change of clothes, non-perishable foods, water, extra batteries, flashlights, and phone chargers” and “prepare to evacuate to a safe location,” staff said in a statement.

Along the Central Coast, the weather service issued high surf warnings and a coastal flood advisory, citing a combination of high tide cycles, strong winds and heavy rain runoff.

In the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the weather service issued a winter storm warning set to last from 4 a.m. Saturday to 10 a.m. Tuesday, advising travel could be “very difficult to impossible,” and to expect one to two feet of snow at the Tahoe Basin and three to five feet above elevations of 7,000 feet. By Friday afternoon, chain control checkpoints were in place on Interstate 80 and Highway 50.

Staff writer Rick Hurd and George Kelly contributed.

The Paradise Skate owner and his staff were caught off-guard by the all-day New Year’s Eve rain that pummeled the region, having no time to add sandbags and spray foam in the cracks to fortify the business before water poured in, flooding the building and effectively shutting it down the only roller rink in eastern Contra Costa County for months to come.

“There was lots of water everywhere and it penetrated the building and came through the drains that normally shouldn’t have anything in them,” manager Bob Bruce said. “And once it gets in, the wood will soak it up.”

Warrenburg, who was away at the time, said the building had six inches of water surrounding it.

“The problem was when it came so fast like it did, we did not get time to seal all the doors like we normally do,” he said.

Warrenburg’s staff later added some 200 sandbags around the building and was able to seal the doors to prevent more water from seeping into the rink and are now standing by to pump it out if needed when the next storm hits.

“It comes in very minimal and you just take a shop vac and suck it up and then you pour the water out … and we can keep the damage minimal if we can do that,” he said.

In the meantime, his 16 employees – some just hired – are out of work until the rain stops, the fixes are made and they can reopen. It’s a timeframe Warrenburg is unsure of at this point while he waits for estimates to replace the rink’s 9,300-square-foot maplewood floating floor and the surrounding carpet among other items.

He’s also had to cancel dozens of parties, classes and other events that were scheduled, the rink owner said.

“I’m giving refunds like crazy,” he said.

Michelle Higby of Concord coaches an artistic roller skating club and runs classes four times a week at the Antioch rink and was disheartened to hear of the water damage and temporary closure.

“We’ve worked really hard to build the club,” she said. “And, it’s mostly heartbreaking for those kids since this was going to be our first full season since before COVID.

“It’s pretty hard on some of the kids because they’re getting old enough to be committed on their own (to the sport),” Higby added. “It’s not just fun; they’ve got goals that they’re trying to meet.”

Bruce suggested that it would be eight to 12 weeks before the rink can reopen, and that also depends on the supply chain, and how fast materials can be shipped.

“It’s a major guess,” he said, noting they’d keep customers aware of progress on their Facebook page.

Warrenburg, who bought the business – formerly called Roller Haven – in 2008 and leases the building from the state, is no stranger to flooding. Operating as a roller rink since 1969, the structure is located at the county fairgrounds, near a creek that flows to the San Joaquin River and is prone to flooding during high tides and torrential rain storms.

In 2009, more than a quarter of the rink’s wooden floors were damaged when 18 inches of rain surrounded his building, but even so, there was less damage because they were able to protect the building with sandbags and foam before the deluge hit.

“We’re not flooded around our building at this point – the water comes and goes – so water comes up and floods us and then after the tide goes down and the water goes out, the water goes away from our buildings,” he said. “ When the water is up against our building, whether it’s one inch, two inches or six inches, we have water coming through some of the cracks, and we use shop vacuums and sump pumps to get the water out.”

Bruce said he’s hoping the rain will stop long enough to dry things out and get back in the building and make some repair estimates.

“Mother Nature needs to stop raining right now,” he said. “We’ve got (the building) sealed and barricaded and sandbagged just to keep everything else from getting ruined.”

Rainwater causes seasonal flooding around the Contra Costa County Fairgrounds area. The county’s flood control district made improvements to the stormwater system in 1993, but a gap was left near the area of 10th and O streets because of a lack of funding. Additional culverts were added in 2012, paid for from a Department of Water Resources fund for flood prevention.

Now Warrenburg is hoping there will be federal or state disaster relief funding to help him renovate the flooded-out center, which he estimates will cost somewhere uo to $400,000 in repairs. Unfortunately, his flood insurance lapsed while he was changing insurance companies, he said.

“We don’t know when it’s gonna flood again. … We’re just kind of watching the news. We keep watching the creek, so we stay on top of it.”

Despite the challenges, the hardy business owner has no intention of leaving because he said he really enjoys running a family entertainment business.

“Yeah, we do have to put up with this flooding, and usually, it’s a lot of work every winter, especially when there’s wet winters, but it’s worth it,” Warrenburg said. “It’s been like 15 years (since significant rain damage); however, this time the rain got us.”

The famous local author wrote in his 1952 epic East of Eden that “sometimes it raged and boiled, bank full, and then it was a destroyer.”

“I think the public forgets,” Nieto said at a news briefing Thursday afternoon, “how dangerous the Salinas River can be.”

In the Bay Area, rain was expected overnight Thursday, but no more than one-tenth of an inch was expected in urban areas. Light rains are forecast to return Friday for the Monterey and San Francisco bay areas, delivering half and inch of rain to San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland, with up to an inch falling Saturday, and delivering snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains.

But in Monterey County, authorities and weather forecasters are concerned that a wave of water from storms earlier in the week is making its way down the Salinas River and up the Salinas Valley.

The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office ordered evacuations for low-lying areas along the river in preparation of floods that could potentially close overland routes into the area, isolating residents and businesses.

Officials prepared for Highway 68, River Road, Reservation Road, Blanco Road, multiple secondary roads, and even Highway 1 to potentially close.

“There is a high probability that the Salinas River will flood all access points into the Monterey Peninsula at some point on Thursday… lasting through Sunday,” said a statement from Monterey County Supervisor Wendy Root Askew. “This means that anyone who is on the peninsula when flooding occurs will not be able to leave. Conversely, anyone who is not on the peninsula will not be able to enter.”

Monterey County last saw the Salinas River flood like that in 1995. In March of that year, river gauges at Spreckels, the community a few miles south of Salinas where the East of Eden movie was filmed in 1955, recorded a record level of 30.29 feet, said National Weather Service meteorologist Cindy Palmer.

Flood stage at Spreckels is 23 feet, and the river was projected to reach that level late Thursday night and crest Friday morning at 24.4 feet. That’s between its significant flood stage at 24 feet and moderate flood stage at 26 feet, Palmer said. Anything over 28 feet would be considered major flooding, she said.

But Monterey County officials stressed that a lot of factors need to be considered. Askew said at a news conference Thursday that high tides will play a role as the river flows down the watershed. And flooded areas along the route could spread out over farm fields and lessen the amount of water going down the river channel.

“We are basing this information on the best information we have at the time, and it changes daily and sometimes hourly because mother nature is fickle,” added Nieto.

By Thursday afternoon in Monterey County, there already were reports of flooding upriver in Chualar. Nieto said that the disaster will unfold sequentially, as the mass of river water makes its way downstream.

“This will not occur all at the same time,” Nieto said. “This is a slow moving event. The river crests at different times.”

Many residents along the river, especially those with children, already have heeded the evacuation order and left, said Danielle Parker, who lives in the Spreckels community. She and her husband moved their valuables to a friend’s place on higher ground in Salinas. But they and their Great Dane Harileigh weren’t leaving their Spreckels home, where the living quarters are raised above ground level to withstand flooding, with only the garage below exposed.

“We’re hunkering down,” said Parker, 35, whose home is about a mile from the river. “Everyone’s just kind of hanging out watching each others’ stuff for the friends and neighbors who left town.”

The die-hards staying put were planning a party at a community park in the afternoon, Parker said.

“Everyone’s bringing food and drinks, we’ll have music playing,” Parker said. “If it does flood as bad as it might, we’ll have some socialization before we’re all stuck in our houses.”

The nearby Monterey Zoo, and a bed and breakfast and a horse boarding stable were continuing their usual operations. Janine Garcia at the zoo said that “the potential for actually cresting to the point of impacting us is very unlikely — maybe the roads into or out of this area, but the zoo itself will not be impacted.”

Connections Boarding Stable owner Sheryl Fudge said that “if they close the access, we’re all prepared — we have plenty of food on hand, so we should be fine.”

The NWS predicted at least a chance of rain each day and night through Jan. 18, though heavy wind gusts seen in recent days may not materialize. Residents should still be wary, as heavily saturated soils could still leave a window of opportunity for strong gusts to bring trees down and cause damage.

The Bay Area was still assessing and cleaning up severe weather-related damage Thursday from earlier storms. A new sinkhole that opened around 3 a.m. Thursday forced the closure of Highway 92 in both directions from upper Highway 35 to Pilarcitos Creek Road.

At Monterey Bay Kayaks in Monterey, Adam Helm said it’s the slow season and they weren’t too worried about the drop in business. He said employees who work at the Monterey site could work at another location up the coast if road access is cut off.

“For what we’ve been through over the past few years with COVID, fires, this is pretty minimal,” Helm said.

Gregory Prokopowicz, 44, pleaded guilty last year to murdering Roselyn Policarpio, a Walnut Creek resident who had dated Prokopowicz for two years and told family members she was planning to break up with him that day. But Prokopwicz’s lawyer argued he should be found legally insane at the time of the shooting, which would have resulted in Prokopwicz being sent to a mental institution in lieu of prison.

Prokowicz launched an appeal of Judge Charles “Ben” Burch’s ruling last Dec. 21, court records show. His attorney declined to comment.

Deputy District Attorney Rachel Piersig, who prosecuted the case, praised Burch’s decision.

“This was a horrific domestic violence-related murder in which a young woman was senselessly murdered,” Piersig said in an email to this newspaper. “Prokopowicz will be serving 25 years to life in prison for his actions. It is our hope that his sentencing will bring a sense of justice to the family members of the victim.”

Under state law, prosecutors must prove that a person understood the nature of his or her act, or understood that it was wrong, in order to establish a criminal defendant was legally sane. Knowledge of wrongdoing can be proved by evidence the defendant tried to cover up the crime or elude police.

After the murder, Prokopowicz told Policarpio’s son over the phone that he’d killed her. He fled the area, and was located that evening in Martinez, where police initiated what became a standoff that lasted 19 hours and ended with Prokopowicz’s arrest.

Prokopowicz remains in the Martinez Detention Facility on a no-bail hold, pending transfer to state prison, court records show.

The eighth and ninth storms to target California since Christmas are on the way this holiday weekend, making for volatile and treacherous conditions from the Bay Area to the Sierra.

The storms themselves won’t be as intense as those that devastated communities in the Santa Cruz mountains and along the beaches over the past week, but with rivers running high and soils already saturated, more flooding and mudslides are predicted across California. The Salinas River in southern Monterey County in particular is expected to flood Friday.

“We definitely appreciate the bounty, but we wish it was spread out over a longer period,” Jeff Lorber, meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said Wednesday.

So much snow has fallen already this season that sensors are registering what is considered the “full seasonal snowpack” normally expected by April 1, state climatologist Michael Anderson told reporters during a news briefing Wednesday. It’s still too soon to say whether the snowpack levels will hold until then, but if they do, they could provide ample snowmelt to continue to fill the reservoirs this spring and summer.

Kevin “Coop” Cooper, a longtime Tahoe area ski condition reporter and resort marketing consultant, said the abundant snow is a welcome change after several lean snow years during the state’s drought.

“Right now, I’m looking out of my house and it’s snowing lightly. We’re seeing a nice new amount of snow, temperatures are dropping,” he said Wednesday. “After my 30 years up here, this is one of the best MLK weekends we’ve seen in a long time.”

But that comes with a catch.

Video: California storms drop hail in the Bay Area, cause rockslides, sinkholes and more

With heavy snow and high winds predicted in the Sierra through the weekend, getting to the mountains could be dangerous. Travel in vulnerable areas, especially the Sierra, is not advised from Friday afternoon through Saturday, Lorber said, “when the winds and the rainfall will be at their peak.” The ninth storm is expected to roar in late Sunday through Tuesday.

It’s the kind of warning that weekend warriors amped to hit the Sierra slopes don’t like to heed.

“Fresh snow is like going through butter,” said Andrew Pham, 22, who stopped at Helm of Sun Valley ski shop in San Jose to attach bindings to his new snowboard and is planning to drive up Friday. “When you’re the first one on it, ooh.”

By Wednesday, snowpack levels reached 226% of average for this time of year, beating out 2005 which was 206% of average. All that fresh snow is giving experts reason to feel optimistic that drought conditions that have gripped the Golden State for three years could meaningfully ease by the end of the snowy season.

“The fact that we’re continuing to get this precipitation is just absolutely fantastic,” said Andrew Schwartz, lead scientist at the UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Laboratory near Donner Summit. “It’s still unlikely that we’re going to get completely out of this drought in a single year. But if the storm door stays open… we can put a serious dent in it.”

As of Wednesday, major Northern California reservoirs have registered “impressive gains,” Anderson, the state climatologist, said. But there’s still plenty of catching up to do. Lake Don Pedro east of Modesto is at 69% capacity, for instance, and San Luis Reservoir southeast of the Bay Area, which has risen 35 feet since Dec. 1, is 40% full. The Shasta and Oroville reservoirs, the behemoths of California’s water system, are at 42% and 47% respectively. Lake Oroville has risen more than 90 feet since Dec. 1, surpassing its 2021 and 2022 levels.

“We’ve had quite a deficit because of the drought,” said Molly White, principal engineer with the state water board. “So we’re seeing steep inclines right now in storage, and hope that continues.”

In the Bay Area, Mount Umunhum in Santa Cruz County registered the highest rainfall total in the 24 hours leading to 10 a.m. Wednesday — 1.03 inches. Concord recorded 0.97 inches of rain. About six-tenths of an inch fell in Los Gatos; a quarter-inch fell at Ben Lomond, and two-tenths of an inch fell in San Jose and at the San Francisco International Airport.

In Tahoe, business is booming at ski resorts, despite struggles to keep lifts operational as a series of snow storms continues to plow through the Sierras. So much snow has accumulated in the Sierras already that ski resorts are having to keep track of avalanche risk hour-by-hour.

Mark McLaughlin, the so-called “storm king” who keeps track of Sierra conditions, said he listened to the concussive pounding Wednesday morning of cannons pelting the mountain sides of the Palisades Tahoe resort to trigger avalanches to improve safety before skiers arrive.

“I bet you I heard 20 of them this morning, 20 blasts,” McLaughlin said Wednesday.

John O’Connell, spokesman for Caltrans in the Lake Tahoe area, recommended that skiers from the Bay Area hit the road Thursday if they can, as the storm may arrive earlier Friday than initially expected. They should be prepared to put chains on their car tires unless they have four-wheel or all-wheel drive vehicles with tires designed for rain and snow. Either way, if there are chain controls due to ice and snow, vehicles should drive no faster than 30 mph, he said. And temporary road closures are possible during the snowstorms.

“We recommend people bring blankets, bottled water and snacks, have their phone charged up and a full tank of gas,” O’Connell said. “If we do have to hold traffic, you might be stuck up there in traffic that’s not moving for a little bit. We just want people to be prepared.”

Pham, who was tuning up his snowboard in San Jose on Wednesday, is still hoping to hit that fresh snow.

“But Dad called and said the storm is coming and I shouldn’t go,” he said. “So I guess I’m 50/50. But it would probably be worth it.”

Staff writer Scooty Nickerson contributed to this story.