Thanks to Everyday Heroes

Come hell or high water, Ventura County’s emergency teams make the heroic look routine. Last week’s bumper-to-bumper storms put them to the test once again, and once again they came shining through.

While flooded streets, swamped cars, electrical failures and damaged crops were many, there apparently were no human lives lost and no serious injuries from the violent weather.

In part, that’s because of good planning. Hundreds of homeless people who routinely camp in the Ventura and Santa Clara river bottoms were rousted out of harm’s way and given temporary shelter. Emergency officials distributed thousands of sandbags, put search-and-rescue teams on overnight standby and opened 24-hour centers.

Much credit goes to quick response. A sheriff’s helicopter dramatically plucked a stranded man from a sandbar in the rushing Santa Clara River. Emergency crews answered flood or mud calls at 100 homes and businesses.

Credit, too, goes to ordinary citizens who pitched in to help sandbag, clear drains and navigate littered streets after traffic lights went dark.

Spectacular weather is a periodic fact of life in Ventura County. Public officials can minimize the damage by discouraging construction in flood zones and keeping maintenance of roads, bridges and pipelines up to date. But when the big ones come, it’s our police, fire and other emergency crews that we call. We thank them for coming through for us once again.