County Survives 1st Major Storm

Ventura County escaped relatively unscathed from the first major winter storm, a powerful system that packed 40 mph winds and drenched the coastal communities with up to 6 inches of rain.

Getting their first taste of an El Nino winter, county residents were pounded by a full night of pelting showers and driving gusts that snapped tree limbs, swelled streams and rivers, and short-circuited electrical power in communities from Ojai to Camarillo.

But by Saturday morning, patches of blue sky began peeking through the thick mass of clouds that had started rolling across the county before sunrise Friday.

Forecasters predict that scattered showers will linger over Ventura County today and perhaps into Monday, accompanied by heavy surf and possible thunderstorms.

“I think we answered the call and we did very well,” said Joe Luna, a spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department. “For the most part, storm drains were able to handle the runoff, and people did what they had to do to prepare for the storm. This was a good drill for all of us.”

The weekend storm was one of the most powerful downpours in Ventura County in the past few years, said Bruce Rockwell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard.

But he was quick to point out that it was not an unusual storm for this time of year.

A major downpour two years ago resulted in one fatality and major flooding, with mud and debris closing the Ventura Freeway and causing millions of dollars in crop damage.

And during a 1992 deluge, nearly 5 inches of rain fell in a five-hour period, causing a flash flood in the Ventura River that surged down canyons and creek beds, killing three people and washing several motor homes out to sea.

“It’s a very good chance we’ll get a storm similar to this in January or February,” Rockwell said. “This is definitely the strongest one we’ve had in a few years, but it is certainly not unprecedented.”

Maybe not. But still it was a spectacular storm, one that intensified overnight.

Between midnight and 6 a.m., the front dumped nearly 2 inches in Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley, while Ventura received 1.3 inches, boosting its storm total to 6.1 inches.

*

There were reports of snow at elevations as low as 4,000 feet, including in Frazier Park in northern Ventura County. No mudslides or street closures were reported, although crews were busy all day Saturday clearing rocks and debris from county roadways.

In Camarillo, wind gusts uprooted six power poles, knocking out electricity to dozens of Southern California Edison customers. Across the county, about 7,500 customers were affected Saturday by power failures including the Esplanade mall, which was in the dark most of the day Saturday.

“Considering all the rain and wind, we made it through this first storm pretty well,” said Rudy Gonzales, regional manager for Southern California Edison.

The storm forced cancellation Saturday night of the annual Festival of Lights at Ventura Harbor.

And the city’s annual ArtWalk was practically a washout Friday night, as foul weather curbed the normal flood of art aficionados to little more than a trickle.

*

The exhibition, which usually draws upward of 2,000 people to shops along an eight-block section of downtown Ventura, drew scant crowds.

“It definitely affected everybody,” said artist Rosemary Takeda, who exhibited a sampling of her floral watercolors at the 71 Palm Restaurant. “You couldn’t walk anywhere; it was impossible.”

But Ventura’s Holiday Street Festival downtown was expected to proceed as planned today, starting at 11 a.m.

The downpour caused creeks and rivers to rise several feet, including San Antonio Creek near Old Creek Road north of Casitas Springs. In fact, the creek was running so hard Saturday morning that only four-wheel-drive vehicles dared to cross.

Nearby homeowner Bill Rice ventured out several times during the morning to monitor the water level. He said he had long sought permits to clear the creek bed of debris to help the water flow out to sea, but that officials have been unwilling to grant his request.

“With the predicted amount of rainfall I wasn’t too concerned, but you never know,” Rice said. “Those predictions don’t always run true. In a way, this rain is kind of a blessing, because it helps clear out the creek bed so that it is ready for an even worse storm later on.”

On farmland across the county, the rainfall was both a blessing and a curse.

Rex Laird, executive director of the Ventura County Farm Bureau, said the rain was good for citrus and avocado farmers but bad for vegetable and strawberry growers.

“Depending on how widespread the damage is, we could see some shortages in the next few months, but it’s a little early to say,” Laird said.

*

At the Ventura County Rescue Mission in Oxnard, Calvern Green stayed busy Saturday helping the more than 70 homeless men who came seeking shelter from El Nino’s first punch.

“That’s why we’re here,” Green said, before heading into the kitchen to help prepare lunch. “We’re never this busy, but when it rains, the people start coming in.”

Dusty Frehl said he probably would have been huddling under a bush or the eave of some corner store if it weren’t for the shelter. And he said that while he is no stranger to the cold and rain after more than a decade on the street, a roof is still his best friend.

“God bless them,” he said between mouthfuls of steaming chicken soup. “It’s a lot better than being wet and having all my stuff get wet.”

By nightfall Saturday, Ventura County fire officials canceled a flood alert that had been in effect as the heaviest rains fell. For most of the day, firefighters had monitored flood-prone waterways around the county to make sure the firefighters wouldn’t be caught by surprise.

And even as the clouds gave way to clear skies, Luna was still on patrol. A clogged drain behind one Simi Valley neighborhood had turned a horse arena into an 11-foot-deep lake.

No homes were threatened and there was no need for evacuations. But just to be sure, city crews arrived to pump out the water and funnel it away from the neighborhood.

“A lot of rain fell real quickly and it had nowhere to go,” said Luna, noting that nearby residents took advantage of the lake by floating a rowboat in the standing water. “[That will] take care of the immediate problem, and then we’ll hope that we’ve seen the last of the rain for a while.”

Correspondent Scott Steepleton contributed to this report.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

County Rainfall

Here are rainfall figures from the Ventura County Flood Control Department for the 24-hour period ending at 6 p.m. Saturday. Oct. 1 is the beginning of the official rain year.

*--*

Rainfall Rainfall Rainfall Normal rainfall Location last since since to date 24 hours Friday Oct. 1 to date Camarillo 2.28 4.13 6.84 2.67 Casitas Dam 2.80 5.63 9.20 4.17 Casitas 4.41 8.15 11.63 4.42 Rec. Center Fillmore N/A N/A N/A 3.85 Matilija Dam 2.13 4.53 9.21 4.53 Moorpark 0.83 N/A N/A 2.82 Ojai 4.09 4.21 8.11 3.67 Upper Ojai 4.21 7.87 12.59 3.97 Oxnard 1.93 3.47 7.10 2.51 Piru 1.61 N/A N/A 3.05 Port Hueneme 2.80 4.69 6.67 2.58 Santa Paula 2.09 4.10 7.43 3.41 Simi Valley 3.78 5.20 8.17 2.59 Thousand Oaks 3.90 5.95 8.84 2.80 Ventura 3.50 6.10 8.95 2.83 Govt. Center

*--*