Yosemite-area roads closed in advance of storm
A major storm heading straight for California forced the closure of all roads in Yosemite Valley as of 5 p.m. Friday, the National Park Service reported. All hotel guests are being moved out of Yosemite Valley in preparation for the storm.
Other areas of Yosemite National Park will remain open.
The National Weather Service in Hanford predicts the storm will hit sometime Saturday and intensify Sunday. Yosemite, the rest of the Sierra and the surrounding foothills will bear the brunt of the rainfall, as up to a foot of rain is expected to drench the higher elevations between Saturday and Monday. The foothills will get 3 to 7 inches during that time.
This warm rain also will melt much of the existing snow, which is likely to cause flooding in rivers and runoffs. Both the weather service and the park service are predicting the Merced River will flood into Yosemite Valley.
Sonora is expected to get hit hard, with 10 to 15 inches of rain.
Rain and flooding will hit the San Joaquin Valley floor as well.
On Friday, city of Modesto officials issued a warning in advance of the storm, saying the area is expected to receive anywhere from 1 to 5 inches of rain this weekend. In Modesto, the heaviest rain is expected to arrive Saturday afternoon and last through Monday morning, officials said.
Authorities warned of strong winds along with the rain.
“We are expecting sustained winds between 15 to 20 mph and gusts up to 40 mph,” the city said in its warning. “We anticipate localized flooding and the possibility of downed trees through the weekend. We are closely watching the area where Dry Creek and the Tuolumne River converge. While we have been informed that flows should be manageable, there is a possibility of localized flooding.”
Throughout the weekend, the Stanislaus County Office of Emergency Services will be posting updates to the public and media via Twitter and Facebook using the handle StanEmergency.
StanEmergency’s website offers sandbag pickup locations, contact information for reporting flooded streets and broken tree limbs, a way to register for emergency notifications and other helpful #EmergencyPreparedness info; go to www.stanemergency.com/naturalDisasters/weather.shtm.
The Fresno Bee contributed to this report.
Emergency lines
- To report emergencies with city of Modesto trees, call 209-342-2253.
- To report street flooding, call 209-577-6200.
- To report traffic signal and/or streetlight failures, call 209-342-2297.
- For clogged storm drains, call 209-577-6200.
- For downed power lines and electrical failures, call MID at 209-526-8222 or 888-997-8222.
This story was originally published January 6, 2017 at 7:09 PM with the headline "Yosemite-area roads closed in advance of storm."