Marinscope
There’s good news and bad news as Marin digs out from January’s big storms. The storms were constant and inconvenient, but they also filled reservoirs and made a big impact on the state’s drought.
The county has received relentless rainfall, accompanied by frequent power outages, high winds and road flooding. On Jan. 4 Gov. Gavin Newsom proclaimed a statewide emergency order. That was followed on Jan. 10 by a similar proposal for Marin County by the Marin Board of Supervisors.
The emergency proclamation covers storm impacts for the entire geographic county. And not just on land. On Jan. 4 the San Rafael PD Marine Unit braved the winter storm to assist vessels in distress.
Counties statewide reeled from a series of what the National Weather Service calls atmospheric rivers. The heavy rains combined with saturated ground and high tides to cause neighborhood flooding, inundate roads, erode creek banks, prompt mudslides, knock out electrical power, topple trees, and endanger both lives and public and private infrastructure.
Damages have been heaviest in the West Marin community of Stinson Beach, where 45 residences have sustained water damage from the ocean’s storm surge and another 22 suffered structural damage. In addition, two County-maintained roads and eight non-County maintained roads were damaged but remain passable.
On the “glass-half-full” side of the storms, California has added roughly 4.7 million acre-feet of water to reservoirs and the state’s snowpack has skyrocketed to a two-decade high. It is predicted that the January storms will put a serious dent in the drought.
Marin County Fire Chief Jason Weber told the County Board of Supervisors that local first responders are focused on preserving public safety and assisting the most vulnerable residents, including those with health issues who rely on electricity to survive. Rosemarie Gaglione, Director of County Public Works, said the Roads Division had responded to more than 800 emergency calls for service, managed 25 road closures, cleared 13 debris slides, and removed more than 100 trees from roadways.
A local declaration of emergency allows the County to exercise all necessary authority to protect lives and property and arrange for the restoration of resources with a minimum of interruption or delay. The declaration also allows the County to apply for state and possibly federal aid to reimburse the County for infrastructure repairs and other related expenses, and also paves the way for potential low-interest loans and other aid for private infrastructure damage. State law requires that a governing body that has declared a local state of emergency shall review the need for continuing the local emergency at least once every 60 days.
Marin residents are urged to stay away from the coastal areas to keep rural roads accessible for emergency responders. People should also avoid surging creeks, streams, flooded roadways, and fallen power lines while eliminating nonessential travel during periods of severe weather. Travelers are urged to monitor 511.org for updated information.
Floodwater needs to recede before the full extent of Marin’s damage can be accurately determined.
For more information, visit emergency.marincounty.org, which is maintained by personnel from the County’s recently activated Emergency Operations Center.
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