|
|
|
Uploaded: Monday, October 12, 2009, 9:41 AM
'Hazardous' storm moves in on Midpeninsula
'Potent' remnants of a Pacific typhoon hit Bay Area, with high winds and heavy rain
|
|
by Jay Thorwaldson
Palo Alto Online Staff
Photo
 | Midpeninsula officials and residents are bracing for the first big storm of the season today through Wednesday, deemed "potent" and "hazardous" by the U.S. Weather Service -- although with less rain than initially predicted.
Hazards include slick roads, downed trees, power outages and flooding from local creeks and intersections.
The latest weather advisory said a still-substantial 2 inches of rain can be expected in the Bay Area, down from early predictions of up to 3 to 6 inches along the coastal mountains.
In Palo Alto, officials are preparing for the storm by handing out sandbags at Mitchell Park in south Palo Alto, and alerting its Dispatch Center to monitor creek cameras and pass on warnings if a creek rises precipitously, Police Chief Dennis Burns said.
If a creek reaches 50 percent capacity, the city's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) will be partially activated to bring together officials who can respond quickly to a situation, Burns said. Full operation of the EOC would be ordered if a creek hits 70 percent capacity, he said.
He said the city will be working with the Santa Clara County Office of Emergency Services and the Santa Clara County Water District.
"Rain and increasing wind will begin in the North Bay Monday afternoon, spreading south Monday night, Tuesday and Tuesday night," the Weather Service announced.
Winds could gust up to 60 miles per hour along the coast and in the hills, the service said.
It said because it is the first major rainfall, an accumulation of oil on roads and streets over the summer will make driving particularly hazardous.
"This will be a very dramatic change from the typical late summer pattern the area has been experiencing," the Weather Service said.
Burns said officials generally do not believe there will ba significant risk of flooding from the creeks because the soil in the area is not saturated due to it being the first signifanct storm of the season.
The storm system is the remnants of a Pacific typhoon, named Melor, that hit Japan late last week.
Burns said other than lowland residents picking up sandbags and generally battening down and covering up, there are other things.
"What we're doing at the Burns' house is to clean out the gutters," he said, either rain gutters or street gutters.
Meanwhile, the San Francisquito Creek Joint Powers Authority plans to use the storm to test its own new creek-monitoring system.
The authority, which is charged with improving flood protection around the creek, has placed rain gauges in the foothills in the watershed of the flood-prone creek and will monitor the creek's water level throughout the storm, said Len Materman, the authority's executive director.
Materman said the creek authority -- which is made up of officials from Palo Alto, East Palo Alto, Menlo Park, the Santa Clara Valley Water District and the San Mateo County Flood Control District -- is collaborating with the Menlo Park Fire Protection District on a new website that, once up, would provide storm information from both Santa Clara and San Mateo counties.
Currently, Palo Alto residents can use the Creek Monitor page on the city's website to get information about the creek. The authority's new website would use the new measurements to give residents a more comprehensive look at the conditions around the creek, Materman said.
"We're going to be using this storm system to test the site," Materman said. "We'll then make some adjustments to the site and put it up so that it can be consumed by local residents and emergency responders.
"It'll give a more complete picture of how a rain event may or may not result in a flooding event."
|
|
| Comments
|
Posted by Hurricane Buoy, a resident of another community, on Oct 12, 2009 at 12:00 pm Streaming local webcams, 41-frame Global Environmental Multicast (GEM) animated model,
wave energy and cloudcover animations, ship positions, see:
Typhoon Melor//Santa Cruz
Web Link
|
|
Posted by Another parent, a resident of the South of Midtown neighborhood, on Oct 12, 2009 at 12:15 pm This is exciting! We get to have some weather for a change. Of course, being Palo Alto, we also get to snipe at one another for the absurd way our city operates. This is because, having no weather to deal with, we come up with dumb stuff to keep us occupied. If we lived in a place with real weather, we'd have more serious pursuits to keep us busy.
|
|
Posted by Hmmm, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Oct 12, 2009 at 1:18 pm I think we'll all have our hands full between our busy lives & dealing w/the storm. If it's not as bad as expected, it's still a reminder of what happens in other areas, as well as here sometimes. We have plenty of creeks, trees, shrubbery, power lines & bad drivers to keep us occupied w/this storm!
|
|
Posted by Barbara, a resident of another community, on Oct 12, 2009 at 1:21 pm
"The City of Palo Alto is taking precautionary steps to provide sand and bags for residents concerned about the incoming storm. While we anticipate that the ground will be able to absorb the rain, sand and empty bags are being placed at Mitchell Park adjacent to the little league field. We anticipate delivery at 3pm or soon thereafter.
Additionally, Emergency Operations Center staff remain on-call and are monitoring the situation.
The current situation is as follows:
-The ground is unsaturated
-There is little or no creekflow
-Public safety staff is continuing to monitor the situation and will provide updates as needed.
-The monitoring systems for creek flow are working properly.
Updates will be provided to the City's website, the emergency information recording 650.329.2420 and Paloaltoonline.com"
|
|
Posted by Barbara, a resident of another community, on Oct 12, 2009 at 1:47 pm Just a reminder that you will need to fill your own bags, and should bring your own shovel.
|
|
Posted by Mary Carlstead, a resident of the Duveneck/St. Francis neighborhood, on Oct 12, 2009 at 2:13 pm This is a response to a message which we sent to Chief Dennis Burns this morning, The City is really on top of this approaching storm. This storm has nothing to do with California Avenue. It is a dangerous storm. So just don't sit there and complain.. Get prepared. Mary Carlstead
Hi Mary and Robert
Thanks for the email with regard to the inclement weather we are
expecting.
I have some information that will hopefully make people feel more at
ease about the incoming storm.
First we checked the creek monitor and creek cam and they seem to be
working quite well. We will continue to monitor them as the day
progresses. We will also monitor the weather channel and the NOAA
updates.
We will have additional personnel on standby in the event we need to
respond. This will include patrol personnel for the field as well as
personnel to work in the Emergency Operations Center.
Fire and public works personnel may also be put on standby.
We will also be in contact with the Santa Clara County Office of
Emergency Services and Santa Clara Valley Water District to coordinate
activities and resources.
We will also have some of our Public Information Officers ready to
respond to assist us in sending out messages to the public and working
with the media. This may include CANS messaging should flooding become
imminent.
We hope that people are aware of the incoming weather system and are
making preparations accordingly. Thanks, Dennis
|
|
Posted by Mary Carlstead, a resident of the Duveneck/St. Francis neighborhood, on Oct 12, 2009 at 2:24 pm Follow up message from Chief Dennis Burns
Please feel free to go ahead and forward my email message to all who might be interested. I have been in contact with Chief Marinaro from Fire who has been speaking to the Public Works Department and his OES Coordinator, Barbara Cimino.
We called in our Public Works staff who will be staging sand bags and sand at Mitchell Park. Our PANDAs will be monitoring the sand bag site. if we dont use the sandbags this week, we will surely use them later in the season.
Also fyi, our City's Emergency Plan calls for us to closely monitor the creek levels. At 50% capacity we activate our Emergency Operations Center and begin making contingency plans. At 70% we begin a full activation in anticipation of flooding.
At this point we do not believe we will be putting out a CANS message unless it looks like there will be flooding. We will be calling the PA Weekly to give an update. Call me if I can help. All the best. Dennis (Burns)
Now to you residents. Do you have extra food like milk? Do you have oil lamps or candles or flashlights ready? POrtable stove? Do you have a Land LINE phone plugged in. If the power is out, a portable phone does not work. Cell phone? Maybe depending on wind damage to towers, I am told. Are you willing to get out in a rain coat and get leaves out of the storm drain grates and the gutters and branches out of the street? Do you know seniors in your neighborhood who live alone and might need help? Do you have a battery powered radio and extra batteries? If the power goes out, it will be our city employees turning it back on. We are the first line of our own defense and our neighbors.
|
|
Posted by Smiley, a resident of the Leland Manor/Garland Drive neighborhood, on Oct 12, 2009 at 4:30 pm Thank you, Another Parent, for making me laugh out loud!
|
|
Posted by YSK, a resident of the Old Palo Alto neighborhood, on Oct 12, 2009 at 10:18 pm Even though I came to Palo Alto 35 years ago from New York, I will never get used to a rainy day being called a 'storm' or 'rain event'. It's just....RAIN. Live through a blizzard or hurricane. That will put things into perspective fast.
|
|
Posted by Agree, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Oct 12, 2009 at 10:37 pm We lived in Minnesota for 20 years and witnessed sheets of rain, golf-ball sized hail. Rain here is sissy rain and not storms.
|
|
Posted by Sharon, a resident of the Midtown neighborhood, on Oct 12, 2009 at 10:42 pm The main hazard is that the roads will be very slick when the oil mixes with rain in the first 2 days, unfortunately drivers always forget this.
The news should remind everyone ahead of time, the mix of oil and water can be as bad as black ice, drive slower and keep distance between cars, if you have 4 wheel drive use it.
|
|
Posted by saleha, a resident of the Charleston Meadows neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 12:48 am I'm sitting here waiting for the storm! I am so excited to see it come, but right now the winds are really wimpy...alas, please bring on the storm, let it howl and let it scowl after all we are leading up to Halloween....I love to hear to wind and I love to see the rain pound down...it makes you feel alive, life is so great...I wish it would pour and pour and pour...makes me remember swishing in the puddles with my wellies as a child...loves it, bring it on!!!
|
|
Posted by REALweathervet2, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 12:55 am What are all the sandbags for? I can see if you live near a creek or the sea. Why inlanders need them?
|
|
Posted by A Hoosier, a resident of another community, on Oct 13, 2009 at 9:55 am All of you should go to the Midwest for a summer and THEN tell me if you think this is a "hazardous" storm.
|
|
Posted by R Wray, a resident of the Midtown neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 10:05 am Enjoy a typhoon in Hong Kong via youtube.
Web Link
|
|
Posted by Crescent Park Dad, a resident of the Crescent Park neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 10:41 am @ REALwethervet2: Were you here for the last flood? You didn't have to live close to the creek to have your basement filled with water --- or 3 feet of water surrounding your home in the St. Francis neighborhood...
Once the creek flows over the banks - the water goes everywhere.
|
|
Posted by Another Hoosier, a resident of another community, on Oct 13, 2009 at 10:44 am I agree with "A Hoosier". This is nothing! I'm still waiting for the "Big, Hazardous, Sandbag needing storm"!
|
|
Posted by George, a resident of the College Terrace neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 10:52 am Floods are hazardous, yes, but isn't it the city's responsibility to make sure we have adequate drainage systems? After all, if there have been floods here before, the whole Bay Area should be able to distinguish a flood from a measly 2 inches of rain.
|
|
Posted by REALweathervet2, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 11:46 am CrescentParkDad: No, I was probably shoveling 4 feet of snow and de-icing my pathways while you all were dealing with that. Good to know about the use for the bags. I don't live near a creek or have a basement. Houses have basements out here? Interesting. Learn something new every time I read these forums.
|
|
Posted by Nora Charles, a resident of Stanford, on Oct 13, 2009 at 1:05 pm I guess it's all relative. With flooding, heavy winds, houses pelted with rain and bits of trees, streets littered with tree branches, creeks rising dangerously, sirens screeching to accidents, power outages (in some areas)--well, to some of us that's a storm!
|
|
Posted by Thanks, Nora Charles, a resident of another community, on Oct 13, 2009 at 1:41 pm I was getting ready to write something similar. Many of us are on a flood plain, and the common flooding of streets in certain areas can be dangerous. The high wind advisories for the bridges and waterways are no joke, nor is driving through the local hills and mountains.
|
|
Posted by A Palo Alto parent, a resident of the Duveneck/St. Francis neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 2:43 pm It's surprising how few people seem to know about the flood on Feb. 2 1998. I think it was four hundred houses that had flood water in the house. People in our neighborhood had inches to feet of mud and water inside. It was very tough.
|
|
Posted by Resident, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 2:55 pm We have rainy days. We have storms. Today we have a storm.
|
|
Posted by Hmmm, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Oct 13, 2009 at 3:27 pm Yes, numerous households on the peninsula were deeply effected by the floods we've had in the last 10 years, not just the 98 storm. It takes planning, work & effort to sandbag, to learn which ways the water may or may not run, how one may be vulnerable to storm damage via trees, flooding, traffic hazards, power outages, etc.
We don't need to feel bad about storms because we don't live in Minn or NY or elsewhere.
|
|
Posted by Tim, a resident of the Crescent Park neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 3:44 pm I'm glad we own our own Utilities. Want to wait hours for PG and E to turn the power back on or re-light a furnace or water heater??
|
|
Posted by Anon, a resident of another community, on Oct 13, 2009 at 4:20 pm What do storms in the mid west have to do with the weather out here? Houses and neighborhoods out there are built to deal with inclement weather, ours aren't. Our storm drains can't takes inches of water a minute, causing floods. A flood is a flood is a flood. I'm not sure why you think 'cause you saw a flood in the midwest you are better than us.
Our cars, for the most part, aren't 4 wheel drive (frankly those around here that have them do so only for show, never even seen mud I'm guessing - they probably don't know how to switch them). Our back up batteries are ancient. Our transformers are dusty from the long summer potentially causing fires when water hits them. Our refrigerators are designed to hold the right amount of food for our families, there's no celler to store extra.
So, in my ways, you mid-westerners, we have it much worse. Much worse.
|
|
Posted by John, a resident of the Charleston Meadows neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 8:06 pm Do you people listen to yourselves??!!
"Our storm drains can't takes inches of water a minute", "Our back up batteries are ancient", "Our transformers are dusty" Complain, whine, complain. Poor you! It seems as if you are actually proud of how unequipped you are.
Instead of making lousy excuses for your problems, why don't you try and fix them?
|
|
Posted by jj, a resident of the Fairmeadow neighborhood, on Oct 13, 2009 at 8:12 pm yes, anon, you do have it much worse-- your too busy bragging about how unprepared you are to think about preparing for these natural disasters.
|
|
Posted by Anon, a resident of another community, on Oct 14, 2009 at 7:51 am Hate to tell you luvs, but you've missed the point.
We don't get weather like what happens in the mid west. What we have here is fine for the weather here. My point was that people were comparing our mild weather to that of the mid west and telling us to quit fussing. Our storm drains and roofs and batteries are fine for what we get. Comparing us to the mid west was silly.
We are prepared, for what we get.
|
|
Posted by MF, a resident of Los Altos, on Oct 14, 2009 at 9:01 am I've lived in the midwest, northeast, and overseas...in hurricanes, tornados, blizzards, and earthquakes. Yesterday's hurricane-force winds deserved our respect and preparations, just as they do in other areas.
|
|
Posted by Agree, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Oct 14, 2009 at 9:14 am MF,
We didn't get high winds in Palo Alto like you did in Los Altos. It was just rain yesterday and is drizzle today. Storm? No.
|
|
Posted by Lisa Maloni, a resident of the Barron Park neighborhood, on Oct 19, 2009 at 2:10 pm And the JPA is handling these new crekk monitors? We are in trouble now.
|
|
|
| |
2007 Awards from the California
Newspaper Publishers Association
Palo Alto Weekly
First Place
Local News Coverage
Local Breaking-News Story
Feature Story
Second Place
Feature Story
Environmental Reporting
Sports Coverage
General News Photo
Photo Essay
Freedom of Information
The Almanac
First Place
Environmental Reporting
Editorial Pages
Lifestyle Coverage
Second Place
Environmental Reporting
Mountain View Voice
Second Place
General Excellence
Editorial Comment
Front-Page Design
|
|
|
Send this story
Print this story
