Flooding Across California Lingers On

In early January, California experienced major flooding due to severe storms and rain. The most affected areas were within Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, although the storm surged up the coast towards San Francisco Bay. The rain and flooding caused many roads to be closed and flights to be canceled, especially in the Santa Barbara area. The rain was especially dangerous because the area was already really wet due to previous storms over the holidays. “There is only so much room for that rain to go, so it could still be a little hazardous out there,” said Robbie Munroe, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. 

The storm later moved to Los Angeles, where it weakened and eventually stopped. Some locations even experienced up to 2.0 inches of rain in an hour. There were many emergency alerts from the county office of emergency management, also known as OEM. 

The coastal areas were highly affected because of the king tides combined with the storm. The areas mostly affected by this storm surge and coastal flooding were in the San Francisco Bay. Parts of Highway One became washed out in sections. Many local roads were flooded. Many people in the coastal flood zones were evacuated. Harbors were inundated with damaged boats along the shore. The atmospheric river is what drove the rain. They recorded waves up to 24 feet in the Bay Area. 

Unfortunately, some people were not evacuated in time. A man was swept away into a creek in Santa Barbara County on Jan. 3 and was later found deceased in the creek. His body was later discovered in the Maria Ygnacio Creek.

 Many people were upset with this storm because they traveled to see family and had to wait to return home. Many shops and people lost business because of the storm. The Junction Beer Garden, a restaurant just north of San Francisco, prepared for the storm by lining the building with sandbags. Melissa Schwartz, who works at Junction Beer Garden, explained that King tides are always noted in employees’ work calendars because of the risk they present to the creekside business, she said; it flooded during one event a few years ago. 

County workers were sandbagging the creek one Friday afternoon to prepare themselves for more flooding. Melissa also explained that the store was open on Friday, but many customers could not reach the restaurant due to so many roads being closed from the flooding. The rain was not only combined with flooding but also with a storm that occurred during winter break. This also caused the closing of every lane on the 101 freeway, junction of SR1, Highway 1, and Winchester Canyon Road.

 Later on Friday, the Topanga Canyon Boulevard was closed as well. This storm has caused many homes, roads, and businesses to be destroyed and has caused lots of damage throughout the state.