Santa Cruz County Sheriff issues evacuation orders in southern parts of county
SANTA CRUZ (CBS SF/BCN) - Heavy rains, wind and runoff have prompted the Santa Cruz County's Sheriff to issue expanded evacuation orders for southern parts of the county Wednesday afternoon.
The evacuation order issued at 1 p.m. was triggered by concerns over potential flooding, debris flow, or other dangers in certain low lying areas, according to the Sheriff's Office.
The evacuation order for the following zones:
PAJ
E015, E024, E026, E027, E028, E029
CTL E010, E014, E015, E018, E019, E026, E027, E028, E029, E050, E051
CRZ E080, E081 FEL 008, 011, 012
The area includes parts of Watsonville, Capitola, Soquel and the Santa Cruz Mountains. Residents may look up their evacuation zones at community.zonehaven.com.
Runoff from the heavy rain was creating road hazards along Highway 17 near Redwood Estates.
Earlier Wednesday morning, authorities informed local residents living on Weston Road Wednesday morning that stormy weather and flooding prompted an evacuation warning.
The warning comes a day after the county declared a local emergency in response to the ongoing winter storms hitting the region, which had already caused millions in damage before the atmospheric river hit later that week.
In a statement released at 10 a.m. Wednesday, the sheriff stated that heavy rains and runoff mean there was a high probability of the road being cut off by flooding.
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"You should be prepared to be isolated for an extended period of time or consider evacuating the area. Emergency vehicles will not be able to access any areas of Weston Road should the entrance become blocked," the sheriff's statement read.
Santa Cruz is still recovering from storms last Friday and Saturday that caused an estimated $10 million in damage, according to a press release from county administrative officer Carlos Palacios. Thrat number is expected to grow as damage from those storms is assessed and as the county prepares for more damage from storms hitting the Central Coast Wednesday and Thursday.
The storms last week caused widespread flooding, mudslides and infrastructure damage, county officials said. Roadways failed on Glenwood Drive, Granite Creek Road and Highland Way, and Soquel Village experienced heavy flooding, as did Corralitos Creek and Salsipuedes Creek.
The National Weather Service has forecast as much as 4 inches of rain on Wednesday in Santa Cruz, and up to 2 more inches on Thursday along with winds with gusts as high as 37 mph on Wednesday.
The disaster declaration will allow the county to seek emergency funding from the state. It is expected to be ratified by the Board of Supervisors at its meeting next week, according to the county.
