Five homeless people were rescued by emergency workers on Tuesday after their encampment in a San Jose golf course was flooded amid major winter storms that have left California reservoirs and waterways dangerously overflowing.
The homeless people were rescued in boats from an encampment where as many as 50 or more people have been living.
After more than five years of severe drought, water has returned to California with a vengeance. Northern California has seen more than twice as much precipitation as normal since 1 October, including as much as 7in of rain in some areas over the weekend. Southern California has also seen unusual amounts of rain resulting in urban flooding, sinkholes and mudslides.
About 500 people were ordered to evacuate their homes in San Joaquin County on Monday afternoon after the levee on the San Joaquin river was breached. The leak was repaired Monday evening but the evacuation order remained in place Tuesday.
On Monday, officials at the Don Pedro reservoir in the San Joaquin valley opened the gates of the spillway to allow excess water to escape – the first time the spillway has been used since 1997. The gates will remain open for at least four days, according to county officials, who urged people living downstream to prepare for possible flooding.
The increase in flows on the Tuolumne River due to spillway opening at #DonPedro has the water flowing high and dirty over La Grange Dam! pic.twitter.com/EFiWsSYbck
— Jake Wenger (@NutFarmerJake) February 21, 2017
It is a particular risk for homeless people, who in California often reside close to river embankments, lakes, rivers and even flooding channels.
The homeless encampment at San Jose’s Los Lagos golf course, where Tuesday’s evacuation took place, grew after the city evicted more than 200 homeless people from a large camp known as the Jungle in late 2014, according to the general manager, Scott Hathaway.
“They don’t want to have any problems. They’re usually very courteous,” Hathaway said of the people who call the golf course home. “By and large, there’s very little interaction or effect for the golf course.”
Three other homeless people were rescued from the rising creek on Monday in two separate incidents, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
The flooding of Coyote creek was caused by the overflowing Anderson reservoir, which reached capacity and sent water pouring over the spillway and into the creek on Saturday for the first time in over a decade.
Powerful storm expected to douse the Bay Area, Anderson Reservoir likely to continue to spill. https://t.co/K6YI9AgLzH pic.twitter.com/GHbRooXw43
— NBC Bay Area (@nbcbayarea) February 19, 2017
It was one of dozens of dramatic scenes captured on footage across the state. The California highway patrol posted dramatic photographs of a portion of Highway 50 that has collapsed in the Sierra Mountains due to the heavy storms.
Meanwhile, in Napa County, Lake Berryessa rose to the level of its distinctive “Glory Hole” spillway for the first time since 2006.
#LakeBerryessa spillway hole is intimidating #castorm #BayAreaStorm pic.twitter.com/jCaK1GHk5J
— Matthias Gafni (@mgafni) February 20, 2017
In Lake County, about 2,000 people were stranded in Spring Valley, a remote community with just two roads running in and out. One of the roads was washed away by the storm and the other was blocked by mudslides, according to the Associated Press.
