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Flood breaks a California river dam, evacuating more than 1,500 in a Latino farming community

2023-03-11T22:53:25.913Z


Facing the tenth atmospheric river, authorities had urged residents around the Pajaro River to get out before the rains came, but some stayed and had to be pulled out of the water. More than 8,500 people were under evacuation orders and warnings in Monterey County.


By Nic Coury and Stefanie Dazio -

The Associated Press

A northern California farming community famous for its strawberry crop was forced to evacuate early Saturday after the Pajaro River levee breached from the rise of a new atmospheric river that swept through the state.

More than 8,500 people were under evacuation orders and warnings Saturday

in Monterey County, including about 1,700 residents — many of them Latino farmworkers — from the unincorporated community of Pájaro.

Monterey County officials reported Saturday that the levee collapse was about 100 feet (30 meters) wide.

Emergency crews urged residents to get out before the rains arrived on Friday, but some stayed and had to be pulled from the water early Saturday.

A boy and a man cycle across the water in Watsonville, California, on March 11, 2023. Nic Coury / AP

First responders and the California National Guard rescued more than 50 people overnight in Pájaro.

A video shows a member of the Guard helping a driver to get out of a vehicle stuck in the water.

“We had hoped to avoid and prevent this situation, but

the worst case scenario came with the overflow of the Pajaro River and the levee breach

around midnight,” Luis Alejo, president of the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, tweeted.

Alejo described the flood as "massive" affecting the 1,700 residents of the community and considered that the damage will take months to repair.

Crews began work to repair the levee Saturday as residents slept in evacuation centers.

atmospheric tenth river

The storm marked the state's 10th atmospheric river of the winter, storms that brought enormous amounts of rain and snow to the state and helped ease dry conditions that had lasted for three years.

A man watches the flooding in Watsonville, Calif., on Saturday, March 11, 2023. Nic Coury / AP

State reservoirs, which had reached shockingly low levels, are now well above average for this time of year, prompting state officials to

release water from dams

to help control flooding and make room in the event of more rain.

State transportation officials said Friday they cleared so much snow from roads in February that there would be enough to fill the iconic Rose Bowl stadium 100 times.

Farming community hit by rains

The Pajaro Valley is a coastal agricultural area known for growing strawberries, apples, cauliflower, broccoli, and artichokes.

National brands like Driscoll's Strawberries and Martinelli's are based in this region.

In 1995, the levees on the Pajaro River breached, submerging 1,011 hectares of farmland and the community of Pajaro.

Two people were killed and the flooding caused nearly $100 million in damage.

A state law, passed last year, advanced state funds for a levee project that was scheduled to break ground in 2024.

Why are you concerned about rain in snow-saturated areas of California?

March 10, 202301:19

State Senator John Laird, promoter of the law and representative of the area, declared that the necessary funds were already available, but that the project could not be carried out in a timely manner due to the rains this year.

"It's tragic, we were so close to achieving it before the storms," ​​he lamented.

Emergency in 34 counties

California Gov. Gavin Newsom's office said Saturday it was monitoring the situation in Pájaro.

"Our thoughts are with all those affected and the state has mobilized to support the community," the governor's office wrote on Twitter.

[Why are you concerned about rain in snow-saturated areas of California?]

Newsom declared an emergency in 34 counties in recent weeks

, and on Friday morning the federal government approved a disaster declaration for some of them, which will mean more aid.

The National Weather Service issued flood watches and warnings, urging drivers to stay off flooded roads.

Another atmospheric river is already in the forecast for early next week and a third is taking shape over the Pacific.

The overflow of the Kern River, seen from a home window, in Three Rivers, California, on March 10, 2023.HEIDI CROUCH VIA TMX / Heidi Crouch via TMX via REUTERS

California was bracing for "a fourth year of drought" before the series of early winter storms, meteorologist Michael Anderson said.

“Now we are in a very different situation,” he added. 

Discouraging forecasts for the coming week

The National Weather Service on Saturday forecast

intensified rain and snow Monday through Wednesday

, with possible flooding along the state's central coast, the San Joaquin and Sacramento valleys, and the southern foothills of the Sierra Nevada, where Another round of heavy, wet snow is expected to hit mid-week.

[A Historic and Deadly Winter Storm Threatens California]

The snow level in the Sierra Nevada, which provides about a third of the state's water supply, is more than 180% of the April 1 average, when it historically peaked.

The snowpack in the highlands was expected to be able to absorb the rain, but below 4,000 feet it could start to melt, causing flooding, forecasters said.

Source: telemundo

All news articles on 2023-03-11

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