The latest round in a gantlet of high-powered storms made its way to the Bay Area on Monday, bringing new evaucation orders as local waterways filled — cresting over flood stage in some locations — and wind gusts reached more than 40 miles per hour, the National Weather Service said.
Wind gusts hit 44 mph in Oakland and 38 mph in San Francisco, pulling down plenty of branches and, in some cases, toppling entire trees. According to a frequently updated Pacific Gas and Electric Company outage map, thousands of customers were without power during the late Sunday and early Monday morning hours.
It's going to get windier soon – Here's a look at the timing of strong winds coming thru overnight with strongest winds occurring between 12-8 am. Be cautious of downed trees and powerlines, especially given the saturated soils. #CAwx pic.twitter.com/pNnxhFO561
— NWS Bay Area 🌉 (@NWSBayArea) January 9, 2023
While dangers from high winds were expected to calm after the morning, moderate to heavy rains were forecast throughout the day. Forecasts showed between one-half and three-quarter inches of rain headed to San Jose and San Francisco on Monday afternoon, and as much as one inch in Walnut Creek.
Rainfall totals from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration showed nearly 0.95 inches in San Jose, 1.38 inches in Oakland and 1.44 inches in downtown San Francisco as of 12:45 p.m. Monday. Mt. Diablo had received two inches.
The winds were expected to slow gradually to mid-30 mph gusts by Wednesday, but the rain isn’t going anywhere for the foreseeable future. According to NWS predictions, the scattered rain bands could regroup overnight and give bigger downpours to certain areas, namely the Santa Cruz mountains and the coastline.
Get live Bay Area storm updates with details on evacuations, flooding and damage
Forecasts for Tuesday showed between one-quarter and one-half of an inch of rain in San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose, with a near-repeat prediction for Wednesday. Temperatures were expected to be consistently in the high 50s throughout the week, with lows in the high 40s.
NWS meteorologist Brayden Murdock called the upcoming rain systems weaker than what the Bay Area has seen in multple storms since Dec. 31, but said they’ll be “consistent.”
“There’s still really good chances of rain throughout our seven-day forecast,” he said.
The influx of downpours and weather-related damages are something that Bay Area residents perhaps weren’t prepared for since the region simply hasn’t seen a string of systems like this in some time, Murdock said. He added that the recent systems have been reminiscent of the 2017 events which saw massive flooding in Santa Clara County.
“We have been on quite the dry pattern,” Murdock said. “I think a lot of people got used to that. As far as our tolerance for rain goes, this has been sticking out like a sore thumb.”
Saturated soils from prior storms increased chances of flooding near several Bay Area rivers and creeks. In an early Monday morning bulletin, the NWS warned of flood dangers at the Alameda Creek near Niles, Arroyo de la Laguna at Verona, Guadalupe River above Highway 101 in San Jose, Coyote Creek above Highway 237 in Milpitas and in Edenvale, Pacheco Creek near Dunneville and the San Lorenzo River.
Late Monday morning, officials closed southbound lanes of Highway 101 in Gilroy due to flooding near the Mesa Road exit.
The San Lorenzo River reached flood stage before dawn Monday morning, with water just inches from the bottom of two bridges, including the historic Covered Bridge. County officials ordered in the Felton Grove neighborhood near the Covered Bridge and the Paradise Park area down river near Santa Cruz.
In downtown Felton, floodwater closed the main intersection at Mount Hermon and Graham Hill roads, trapping a motorist from Ben Lomond who had to have rescue crews push her car out of the water to safety.
“I saw other cars making it through there,” explained motorist Julie Armstrong, 76, from Ben Lomond, conceding that in hindsight, “I shouldn’t have done that!”
San Lorenzo River heading into downtown Santa Cruz looks like the Amazon, but rain has stopped and isn’t forecast to resume till tonight pic.twitter.com/BWzuqrRQi5
— EthanBaron (@ethanbaron) January 9, 2023
Several slides and fallen trees caused closures on Santa Cruz County highways Monday morning. A slide on southbound State Route 17 south of Glenwood Drive forced a road closure, per California Highway Patrol.
Please avoid the area https://t.co/UuK4dcZ82k
— CHP Santa Cruz (@CHPscrz) January 9, 2023
Also closed were Highway 9 and Holiday Lane near Highlands County Park in Ben Lomond after a slide, and one lane of Highway 1 south of River Street near downtown Santa Cruz, where debris in the San Lorenzo River was trapped under the roadway.
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office issued an evacuation order for the lower-lying areas near Soquel Creek throughout the county. The Capitola Police Department ordered evacuations in the low-lying residences along lower Riverview and Capitola Village, which was heavily damaged after a storm last week. Evacuation orders and warnings were also issued for much of eastern portion of the town of Watsonville.
With the San Lorenzo River at flood stage, evacuations have begun in the Felton Grove and Paradise Park areas. Soquel Creek has reached action stage. Check your zone at https://t.co/s5GvnC3vMN.
— Santa Cruz County (@sccounty) January 9, 2023
The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office issued an evacuation order Monday morning for low-lying areas of the Carmel River near Carmel-by-the-Sea. Carmel River Elementary School and Mission San Carlos Borromeo del Río Carmelo are both located within the mandatory evacuation zones.
The county opened an emergency shelter for evacuated residents in the Monterey County Fairgrounds located at 2004 Fairground Road.
Storm warnings were enough to prompt a response from the White House. Late Sunday night, President Joe Biden declared an emergency in the State of California, ordering federal assistance to assist with response efforts for damage resulting from storms. The declaration authorized the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate disaster relief efforts in 17 California counties, including San Mateo, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz.
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