Gearing up for storms in Santa Cruz County
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CALIF. (KION-TV)- High winds are rushing through the Santa Cruz mountains. Some rain and snow are in the forecast for our area.
The winter weather advisory that comes with it doesn't happen all too often according to our chief meteorologist Dann Cianca
Public Information Officer for Santa Cruz County Jason Hoppin also explained how they see this next batch of rain and snow.
“It's just another weather system moving through,” Hoppin said. “This is unusually cold and has some unusual circumstances for the mountains that we hope does not pose too much of a challenge for our residents”
This weather can also cause power outages and even delay repairs still being done from the previous storm, according to Public Information Officer for Cal-Trans Kevin Drabinski.
“So on Highway 9, we still have the holiday slide that we're working on,” Drabinski said. “So we're a few weeks from potentially reopening that road. One of the things that we will do during a rain event is we will stand down on any work around the slide. There will be no workers beneath the slide area.”
To prepare for this next storm, PG&E spokesperson Tamar Sarkissian and Drabinski explain how they have people in place and will make sure the roads are safe.
“The important thing that we do all through the mountain areas especially, but even on the main roads and on Highway 101 is to really keep the drainage infrastructure open.." Drabinski said.
“We have technology that helps us determine where we need to set up our crews,” Sarkissian said. “We also have lots of equipment on standby, ready to roll in case we do have damage to our equipment from these winds.”
This preparation takes more than just those companies getting their crews and equipment ready. The communities impacted are just as important as the workers.
“This community is really amazing,” Sarkissian said. “We know that they go through a lot because there are access issues. And so sometimes it can take a little bit longer for us to be able to actually access the equipment in the Santa Cruz Mountains and other parts of the Central Coast.”
Weather related power outages are already being reported to PG&E as we speak. Hundreds of people reported losing power in parts of Santa Cruz and Monterey counties.
Santa Cruz County also urges those living in the Santa Cruz mountains to limit how much they travel as black ice will be a factor once it starts to get colder.
