Some Bay Area residents still dealing with storm damage, power outages
On Monday, the Bay Area was still dealing with the aftermath of Saturday's winds and rainstorm, and in some places, the effects were a little more long-lasting.
A trip through Golden Gate Park during the rain can be pretty soggy but do it when it's windy and it can be downright dangerous. Saturday's storm brought down huge trees all over the park.
Jim Deasy lives nearby and said, after storms, he usually avoids the wooded areas that include the huge eucalyptus and Monterey pines, most of which are reaching the end of their natural lifespans.
"I will not walk through there," he said. "I don't want to get clocked! Monterey pines and Monterey cypress pretty much have a 75-year life expectancy. So, if you have a tall tree like that with a storm and winds, they're coming down."
One large pine fell alongside the park's Bison Paddock, tearing a hole in the enclosure's fence. And on the hill overlooking the field it looked like a bomb had gone off.
A giant eucalyptus fell over, side by side, their shallow root balls exposed. And a number of tall pines simply snapped off at their base. And just across the street, another downed tree caught the attention of a man named Alain, a city gardener who has lived in San Francisco since 1961.
"I mean, we've been here for a few big storms, but I've never seen this many trees, large trees, down all at once like that," he said. "I would say lately, the last few years, things have really intensified with much higher winds. Yeah, you live out near the ocean, you'll get that, 30-40 mile per hour winds, not unusual."
The storm took out more than just trees. Peter Krag said the high winds blew out one of the windows of his 100-year-old house in the Richmond District.
"There was a door that was swinging open, and the cats were all upset," he said. "It cracked that way and half the window fell out. Just from the force of the wind. No trees hit it or anything."
On Monday afternoon, Fulton Street was closed at 36th Avenue after a tree took out a power line and sent debris flying into the street like shrapnel. But the real power headache was in Novato, where electricity had been out for three days. PG&E crews were struggling to replace downed lines in a neighborhood on Fairway Drive.
"Yesterday was slow because there's solid rock beneath that one pole, and then we found a broken pole in the middle of the mix. And we had to stop everything and support it so it wouldn't fall on anybody's house or car," said a PG&E worker who said his name was Rick. "It all started when that tree fell over. It was odd for a healthy tree like that to fall over. Maybe that strong wind that turned into a tornado in the South Bay started here. I have no idea."
Nevertheless, neighbors were beginning to lose their patience.
"I'm glad they're out here working. It's the third day. I feel like I'm living like an animal at home, it's so cold," said Jeff Rawles who had been without electricity since Saturday morning. "I mean, there's no giant hostility. We're just — It's a big deal. It's exciting for one day, but three days, it's a long time. So, we'll be glad when this is done."
For most, it's done when the rain and wind stop. But there are always the unlucky few who are stuck dealing with a storm's effects for a while longer.
