"Hold this levee together": Race is on to fix Cosumnes River levees ahead of next storm
WILTON -- On Bradley Ranch Road, there are tire tracks in the mud signaling the number of trucks that went in and out Friday hauling rip-rap. They move down a dirt road paved with some gravel to make it stable for the size and weight of the equipment required to haul the materials to armor the inside of the levee.
This is the process that's played out for nearly a week along the Cosumnes River as Reclamation District 800 works to fix breaches, breaks, soft spots and boils to maintain the levee. The New Year's storm came in with historic water levels, and in Wilton, residents were given an evacuation order.
Friday, the break dubbed the "Bradley Ranch Break" was plugged and crews worked into the night armoring the sides of the levee with rip-rap. The banks on parts of the levee were exposed, so the race to shore up areas that need it was in full force as the week ended to beat the incoming rain.
"Anytime you put over 12 feet of water in the Cosumnes River you are going to have flooding. There's nothing the district can do about it. All we can do is try to hold this levee together so that nobody is impacted," said Leland Schneider of Reclamation District 800.
Schneider sits on the board of the reclamation district responsible for many of the Cosumnes River levees.
The boundaries of the district are on the west. It follows Grant Line Road to Sloughhouse Road to Jackson Highway ending at Rancho Murieta. On the east, it follows Dillard Road to Meiss Road ending at Rancho Murieta. The southern end of the district ends at Freeman Road.
Schneider told CBS13 the district board, Sacramento County Office of Emergency Services, and the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services met Friday to create a game plan for the incoming storms. He said the takeaways are that all parties, from local fire departments to reclamation districts like his, are better prepared for next week's storms than they were a week ago.
"I've been trying to tell people this for a week. If anybody was on the Wilton Bridge at 1 a.m. or 2 a.m. when this levee let loose, their car would've been slammed up against the side of it. Thank God we had that shut down. We think that two feet of water went over the Wilton Bridge at Deer Creek," said Schneider.
He said there's been good progress made on levee fixes and there are 10,000 sandbags placed on the levee strategically. There are more than 60 people on call to respond.
Funding these projects, however, is beyond the reclamation district's annual budget. Emergency funding is available through Sacramento County OES, according to the California Department of Water Resources.
DWR Director Karla Nemeth told media at a statewide press conference Wednesday that two flood fight specialists visited Wilton to review the levee this week. Schneider, who has been on the ground, said that meeting did happen but lasted a short time and from it, he has not seen the impacts or help.
CBS13 took those concerns to DWR Friday and received an emailed statement attributed to Gary Lippner, the deputy director of flood management at the Department of Water Resources. It read:
"On Monday January 2, RD 800 contacted the Flood Operations Center and requested technical assistance. A DWR Flood Fight Specialist met with RD 800 in the field when requested and provided technical assistance. RD 800 staff has been working closely with Sacramento County and DWR has been in close coordination with the county, which informed the Flood Operations Center that they are providing materials, equipment and technical assistance to RD 800 for the repairs and do not require assistance from the state at this time.
"A role of the Flood Operations Center is to mitigate the threat of flooding in emergency situations by providing technical assistance or direct assistance in the form of materials, equipment, manpower and construction contracts. The State does not provide direct funding to local agencies in emergency situations. If an emergency exceeds the available resources of a local agency, they can request assistance through their county OES. If the county has exhausted its resources, it may request assistance from state.
"The Flood Operations Center wants to remind all Californians to pay attention to public safety messages from their local authorities, heed all signs posted on roadways and never attempt drive through a flooded roadway."
Schneider said the reclamation district will continue to do its part in fixing the levee with the hope county and state resources will step in with financial support to carry the fixes through to the finish line.