Storm lashes Lodi, cutting power to some

A windy, wet storm is whipping Lodi and Galt, sending public works and utility crews scrambling to keep power on and streets clear.

There is a wind advisory for San Joaquin County in effect until 11 p.m., and a small stream and flooding advisory until 8:30 p.m., said Ken Clark, of the private forecast service AccuWeather.

Lodi has not yet reported rainfall information, but Stockton has received .43 inches. In the Bay Area, Oakland Museum reported the highest total for the area at 2.11 inches, he said.

Stockton Airport has seen winds reach 40 mph. Clark said he expects the heaviest part of the storm to travel through in the next 8 to 10 hours, but the rain will continue through the night into Wednesday morning. He expects about 1 to 3 inches total for the area.

What have you seen out there? Let us know about any blocked streets, accidents or power outages at 369-7035. You can also e-mail us at news@lodinews.com.

Here are some reports from around the area and numbers you can call to report problems:

Lodi

Lodi Public Works has received 15 calls as of 10:30 a.m. with callers mainly reporting limbs down that are blocking streets, said Sharnay Moultrie, a city administrative clerk. Workers had cleared the debris, and no streets were blocked as of 10:30 a.m., she said

Lodi's Electric Utility operator said he has received calls non-stop and was too busy answering the phones to provide figures on how many Lodi residents might be without power.

To report problems with streets, drainage, water or Lodi Electric Utility power outages, call 368-5735.

San Joaquin County

PG&E has 488 customers in Lodi without power as of 10:45 a.m. There are 4,090 in the county also without power.

"It's the first significant storm of the year to hit our region, and mother nature is packing quite the punch with rain and high winds," spokeswoman Nicole Liebelt said.

One of the wettest

It looks like today will go down as one of the wettest Oct. 13ths on record. Here are storm total rain amounts as of 5 p.m., as well as historical rain amounts for this day (Oct. 13) at some of the larger cities.

Downtown Sacramento: 3.01 inches
Peak wind gust: 48 mph
Top five wettest Oct. 13ths for Downtown Sacramento
1. 3.63 (1962)
2. 1.52 (1884)
3. 1.20 (1899)
4. 0.48 (1957)
5. 0.32 (1882)

Stockton: 1.05
Peak wind gust: 52 mph
Top five wettest Oct. 13ths for Stockton
1. 0.76 (1962)
2. 0.56 (1957)
3. 0.17 (1968)
4. 0.15 (1979)
5. 0.01 (1972)

Modesto: 1.02
Peak wind gust: 47 mph
Top five wettest Oct. 13ths for Modesto
1. 0.93 (1957)
2. 0.33 (1968)
3. 0.23 (1962)
4. 0.20 (1979)
5. 0.06 (1937)

Other locations: Cobb: 5.55
Shasta Lake: 3.30
Auburn: 1.24
Paradise: 1.96
Alder Springs: 2.59
Konocti: 2.89
Blue Canyon: 2.27
Travis Airforce Base: 4.75
Vacaville: 4.19
Sims: 6.20

She said the problem with a high winds storm at this time of year is many of the trees still have foliage and still have many leaves, so it makes the branches heavy. She said the utility is bracing for more outages throughout the afternoon as the storm intensifies.

To report PG&E outages, call 1-800-743-5002.

San Joaquin County has received 35 to 40 calls for service around the county. There were 10 to 12 trees down, not counting the limbs, said Tom Caldwell, superintendent for San Joaquin Public Works. He said there has been some calls for drainage, but there has not been enough rain yet to cause many drainage problems.

To report streets or drainage problems in San Joaquin County, call 468-3074.

Galt

In Galt, the city has received about 20 calls, said Kathi Burris, an office assistant. She said most of the calls have been for trees down on private property or traffic signs.

Power had been going in and out all day around town, she said, and she fielded a call from the Galt Police Department asking Public Works to make sure the back-up generator is working in case of an outage.

To report streets or drainage problems in Galt, call 366-7260.

Sacramento Municipal Utility District is working to restore power to 2,200 customers in Galt around Bayshore Drive, said Chris Capra, a SMUD spokesman. Throughout the county, SMUD is currently responding to 25,000 outages. He said the crews are prepared to be busy the rest of the afternoon and into tonight.

To report power outages in Sacramento County, call 1-888-456-SMUD.

Reader Feedback

dogs4you wrote on Oct 13, 2009 1:05 PM:

" T&C, what makes it even a better day is that I do not have to worry about flooding or a tree making an unannounced visit to roof of my house.

When we lived in Valley Springs, I spent many a sleepless nights wondering if the oaks next to the house would be a reason to call the insurance company. Never did though.

Keep your power dry and gutters clean. "

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