Storm update: Stanislaus County shares weather service warning of possible funnel clouds
Update: The Stanislaus County Office of Emergency Services shared a warning Thursday evening from the National Weather Service that thunderstorms will be possible as early as 10 p.m. and continuing through Friday evening. “Heavy rains and strong winds will continue through the night and there is a potential for funnel clouds. Small accumulating hail will be the main threat with these storms,” it said in a Facebook post. Other impacts may include lightning, gusty winds and brief heavy rainfall.
In a video that was part of another StanEmergency post Thursday evening, Sheriff Jeff Dirkse said we are back where we were about two months ago, in a state of emergency, with two differences: “Our reservoirs are very full. They’re not completely full, they do have some capacity, and TID and MID are managing their flows, coming out of Don Pedro specifically. ...
“The second main change from two months ago: This is a warmer storm and the snow levels are going to be in the 7,000 to 7,500 foot range. ... The impact is when this rain hits that snow, a lot of that will melt and fill our reservoirs even faster. We are generally told that any snow below 5,000 feet — and that’s still quite a bit — is gonna be gone by the end of this storm. All of that water will be in our reservoirs.”
Original story: An evacuation warning went out Thursday afternoon to two trailer parks along the Tuolumne River in Modesto.
The Stanislaus County Office of Emergency Services warned in a Facebook post about the Driftwood Mobile Home Park and adjacent Terrace Trailer Park. They are next to the Ninth Street Bridge and have been vulnerable in past floods.
Sheriff’s deputies were advising residents that they might have to evacuate if the threat grows.
The Tuolumne is expected to remain about 5 feet below its flood stage through Friday afternoon, the California Department of Water Resources said. An outlook was not available for the weekend, when even more runoff is expected in the watershed.
The county OES on Wednesday issued an evacuation order and an evacuation warning for the Newman area along a stretch of the San Joaquin River between Crows Landing Road and Hills Ferry Road. Both remained in effect Thursday.
According to a StanEmergency Facebook post, residents on the east side have been told to safely evacuate the area. Residents on the west side of the same stretch of river are under an evacuation warning and should be prepared to leave if it becomes necessary, county OES said.
The San Joaquin is expected to reach flood monitoring stage by Friday afternoon. The monitoring stage, triggering levee patrols, is 63 feet, and flooding may start to occur at 69.4 feet. According to forecasters, the river is projected to reach the 65-foot level Saturday night, at which a trailer park on River Road may start to take water. Authorities set up an evacuation shelter at Patterson High School, 200 N. Seventh St.
Check back for updates at modbee.com.
This story was originally published March 9, 2023 at 4:41 PM.
