Heavy Rain Soaks Northern California

Heavy rain and high winds continued to pound Northern California on Saturday, causing weather-related problems throughout the region, authorities said.

Water-soaked Northern Californians braced for high winds, flood warnings and even more wet weather, as Southern California prepared for the first onslaught of storms.

“It’s unbelievable,” said Gerard Giudice, general manager of Ristorante Giorgio in Greenbrae, about 15 minutes north of San Francisco.

“There are trees blowing down all over the place, and some of our employees can’t get to work. It’s a disaster, literally. It’s as heavy as we have seen it in a long time.”

Although Northern Californians got a bit of a midday respite from rains that have been drenching the area since late Thursday, storm problems seemed to be everywhere. They ranged from a tornado warning issued Saturday morning after a rotating funnel was spotted on the waters off Cape Mendocino to mudslides and fallen trees that caused traffic backups in Marin, Napa and Sonoma counties.

High wind advisories were issued throughout Northern California, and wind gusts in some areas reached 50 mph.

“I’ve seen some things out there that I haven’t seen in 18 years in business here,” said Dave Reynolds, owner of Cloverdale Cyclery. The city of Cloverdale, in Sonoma County, reported more than 10 inches of rain from Thursday night to Saturday morning.

“I’ve seen streets signs flapping, water coming up onto the sidewalks and cars that looked like they were going to float down the street,” Reynolds said.

The storm, which dropped as much as 9 inches of rain in 24 hours, is the first of three storms thought to be the remnants of Typhoon Pongonsa that are expected within the next week. The typhoon wreaked havoc on Guam earlier this month, causing the territory’s governor to ask for federal disaster relief.

As for the forecast for Northern California, “Pretty much, it’s going to be a rainy week,” said Diana Henderson of the National Weather Service.

Weather officials said they expected many Northern California rivers, including the Napa, Russian, Garcia and Navarro, to flood in some areas late Saturday.

Travelers endured slight delays at San Francisco International Airport, which was buffeted by steady rain and winds gusting at about 35 mph. Flights were running as much as an hour behind schedule, said the airport manager, Dennis Neves.

Flights at Oakland International Airport were not affected, said Jerry Bell, operations coordinator.

PG&E; reported as many as 280,000 customers without power throughout Northern and Central California on Saturday. Spokesman Jason Alderman said that customers north of San Francisco Bay and along the coasts had been the hardest hit.

Power failures also were reported in the Reno area, where winds gusted as high as 90 mph. At the Nugget Hotel in Sparks, Nev., the lights in the lobby kept flickering on and off, and table candles were being distributed to guests. The hotel’s kitchen crew had prepared 3,000 banquet dinners for Christmas parties to be held there Saturday night, and the staff spent part of the day wondering whether guests would be able to leave their homes to attend.

Chad Bender, a Sacramento investment banker, said that, on his drive into Sparks along Interstate 80, he had seen billboards blown out, an overturned tractor-trailer and an outhouse on its side.

In Southern California, a spokesman for the National Weather Service said the storm that hit Saturday night is expected to drop less than an inch of rain and move through quickly.

But another storm should arrive Monday, with heavier rain Tuesday, tapering off Wednesday. Rain is expected again next weekend, as are high surf at west-facing beaches and some flooding in Southern California coastal areas. Snow will fall at elevations above 7,000 feet.

Capt. Larry Collins of the Los Angeles County Fire Department said an action plan is being developed for the areas that were burned over by fires over the summer.

When storms start, Collins said, “materials will begin sliding off into slopes. It pushes loose soil and ash into the canyons. When it comes, it comes like a flash flood. It will scour trees as well as neighborhoods.”

The department has organized rescue teams to be on call near fire-damaged areas, including Azusa, Glendora, La Verne and San Dimas, cities south of Angeles National Forest, where almost 36,000 acres were charred in September.

The Fire Department is cleaning out debris in the storm basins below burned areas and has distributed sandbags to local fire stations for residents who want to protect their property.

“There’s a tremendous potential for life loss from mud and debris flows after the fires,” Collins said. “We know that it’s coming.”

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Times staff writers Sue Fox, Tom Gorman and Erika Hayasaki contributed to this report.