54 residents evacuated proactively from Newman nursing home due to anticipated flooding
Stanislaus county has called for the San Luis skilled nursing facility in Newman to evacuate its residents due potential flooding from Orestimba Creek. In 1995 and 1998, Newman saw major flooding from the creek, and in 2006, a motorist died while trying to cross a flooded Newman road.
“There was nothing that happened at the building,” said Allison Griffiths, a spokesperson for the facility. Rather, the county alerted the nursing home this morning that it was at risk of flooding in the next two days and wanted to evacuate the residents out of “an abundance of caution.”
These residents “would require more assistance in evacuating since some of the patients cannot walk” said Sonya Severo, a county spokesperson. The 54 at-risk residents have been relocated to skilled nursing facilities in Modesto, Merced, and Madera.
Griffiths said the residents should expect the evacuation order to last up to five days.
As for other parts of Newman, Severo said, “no other area has been ordered for evacuation yet, but we are monitoring that closely.”
This story was originally published January 9, 2023 at 5:15 PM.
