Page 7 - ARUBA TODAY

A7
U.S. NEWS Thursday 28 February 2019

Floods isolate two

California towns, storm

dumps snow in West

By HAVEN DALEY and OLGA The Russian River topped 42
R. RODRIGUEZ feet (13 meters) Wednes-
Associated Press day afternoon, when tele-
GUERNEVILLE, Calif. (AP) — vision helicopter footage
Two communities in North- showed homes underwa-
ern California's wine coun- ter and cars submerged. It
try were accessible only could crest at more than
by boat Wednesday after 46 feet (14 meters) by
a rain-swollen river over- Wednesday night, officials
flowed its banks following a said. About 4,000 residents
relentless downpour across in two dozen river com-
an already waterlogged munities were ordered to
region. evacuate Tuesday evening
The small city of Guernev- but officials estimate only
ille north of San Francisco about half heeded the or-
"is officially an island," with ders, Crum said.
the overflowing Russian Riv- Jeff Bridges, co-owner of
er forecast to hit its highest the R3 Hotel in Guernev-
level in about 25 years, the ille, said he and others
Sonoma County Sheriff's who stayed behind were
Office said in a statement. well prepared to ride out
"Nobody is coming or go- the storm. He and em- Rising flood water makes its way onto River Road Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019, in Forestville, Calif.
ing from the Guerneville ployees spent most of the Rising flood water makes its way onto River Road Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019, in Forestville, Calif.
area at this time," said sher- night moving computers, Associated Press
iff's Sgt. Spencer Crum. The business records and furni-
nearby town of Monte Rio ture to second-floor room. weather station 5 miles (8 2017. she said. "Do not try to go
was also isolated by flood- Reached by telephone, kilometers) from Guernev- A mudslide Tuesday near through any water over a
waters and all roads lead- Bridges said there was ille recorded more than 20 Monte Rio trapped a man foot high because you nev-
ing to it were swamped. about 7 feet (2 meters) of inches (50 centimeters) of and a woman before they er know what you're going
The still rising Russian River water at his two-story home rain in 48 hours. were rescued, messy but to find."
was engorged by days in Guerneville Wednesday In the Sierra Nevada, which unharmed. Firefighters in Monte Rio
of rain from western U.S. but was not worried. has already seen a month "I fell into the mud when worked through the night
storms that have also "As long as everybody is of heavy snow, two Am- the tree fell over the top pulling people out of cars
dumped heavy snow in the safe, dry and warm, it's all trak trains together carry- of me. It happened so fast stuck in flooded roadways
Sierra Nevada, throughout fine. You just ride it out," ing nearly 300 passengers you don't even know," Kear and getting people out of
the Pacific Northwest and said Bridges, noting that this stopped and reversed di- Koch told KGO-TV. their homes as water ap-
into Montana, where Gov. flood was the fourth he's rections because of an Elsewhere in the area, sev- proached, Fire Chief Steve
Steve Bullock signed an experienced in 33 years. avalanche that closed eral people had to be res- Baxman told the Press-
emergency order to help He added: "People in Flor- railroad tracks. Service on cued from cars stranded Democrat newspaper of
keep up the supply of heat- ida have hurricanes, peo- Amtrak's California Zephyr while motorists tried to drive Santa Rosa.
ing fuel amid frigid temper- ple in Maine have blizzards; between Reno and Sacra- through flooded roads. "We took 17 people out of
atures. we have floods," he said. mento, California, has been Nina Sheehan, who is visit- cars and houses during the
Snow from the storms "It's the price we have to suspended until weather ing from North Carolina, night. Too many people are
closed roads and schools pay to live in paradise." conditions improve, Amtrak had to abandon her rental driving into water," he said.
and toppled trucks and Several areas in California spokeswoman Kimberly SUV after it got stuck in a Other waterways, including
trees from Oregon to Mon- set record-high rainfall to- Woods said. flooded hotel parking lot. the Napa River, also were
tana and an avalanche in tals, including nearby San- California officials were also "We made a decision to expected to overflow their
the Sierra prompted Am- ta Rosa, which had nearly concerned about potential take the rental car through banks as an ocean-span-
trak to suspend rail service 8 inches (20 centimeters) mudslides in saturated wine the waist-high water and ning plume of moisture
between Sacramento and of rain in one day. The of- country hillsides and in ar- we got two thirds of the way continued tracking through
Reno, Nevada. ten-waterlogged Venado eas scarred by wildfires in and then the car stalled," the West.q