Northern areas of Sacramento County and western Placer County suffered the
worst of the January rains. Normally placid Dry Creek in Roseville, rose suddenly and
inundated several hundred homes along its normally 10-foot-wide channel.
Flood rescues occurred throughout early January, prompting swiftwater teams
from the area fire departments and the state Office of Emergency Services (OES) Diving
Accident Rescue Team to respond with boats, inflatables and personal watercraft to
rescues for people stranded in cars, trees, and houses.
As the rains continued and calls for service increased, the state OES started
requesting mutual aid resources from neighboring counties for not only the Sacramento
area, but Napa and Sonoma Counties as well.
In some instances the most appropriate assets were not utilized. In one river
rescue a sheriffs patrol boat lost its propeller in the shallow waters, and washed away.
Fortunately, the officers made it to shore downstream.
In another situation, officials sent an Army Engineers unit to help evacuate
residents of a retirement home surrounded by water. The 30-foot landing craft, however,
had nearly twice as deep a draft as the water in the parking lot. Residents
decided to wait where they were and let the water recede.
Residents of the areas hit hardest in January were ready in March. They started
sandbagging and evacuating early, so problems were minimal.
However, in the March rains, neighboring communities along Cache Creek, the
Sacramento River, and spreading into neighboring Yolo and Colusa Counties, were
inundated by rising water. The Sacramento County Sheriff’s helicopter unit found itself
running an evacuation service from a small “island” in Rio Linda to nearby evacuation
areas along I-5.
As in January, fire and rescue agencies found units being dispatched frequently to
rescue children and rafts in local ditches. Many of these reports were determined to be
false, and no lives were reported lost.
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