Winter Storm Warning… still…

PRESS RELEASE

Date: Tuesday, January 19, 2010; 8:30 am
Contact: Kathleen K Rustrum, OES Coordinator, (209) 533-5511

Sonora - According to the Forecast Desk at the National Weather Service this morning, we are still under a Winter Storm Warning until tomorrow night. We will be experiencing light precipitation this morning which will pick up by mid-day. Showers will continue through Wednesday or Thursday.

Currently, we are experiencing wind gusts of 40-50 mph, which will increase up to 60 mph through today, but will wind down tonight. Then the wind is expected to pick up again to 60-65 mph at the highest elevations with tomorrow’s incoming storm in the late morning.

Snow levels are at about 4500’ right now and will drop tonight to 3500-4000’. There is a possibility of another foot of snow through tonight at the higher elevations.

So far, we have received between 2”-4” of rain in the County, depending on the elevation. For the storms that have taken place from last Sunday, January 17^th through this coming Friday, January 22^nd, the expectation is for 4-7” rain overall and 4’-7’ of new snow overall.

A high pressure system may move in Saturday and Sunday giving us a reprieve from the storms for the weekend. This will probably be followed by more storms next week.

Tuolumne County residents and visitors are reminded to:

Reduce or eliminate unnecessary travel during periods of severe weather.
Have emergency supplies on hand: sandbags in flood-prone zones, food/water, flashlights, battery-operated radio, ‘live’ batteries, prescription medications, etc.
Check in on neighbors who may have special needs – in advance of the storm.
Ready for the potential of a power outages due to wind, downed trees, etc.
Check to insure pets/livestock are safe, especially those animal that may live outdoors.
Listen to your local radio stations (and TV stations) for changing weather conditions.
And, please use 911 only when it is vitally necessary.

Sandbag Resources

County Emergency Services, in conjunction with County Public Works, has established three locations for emergency sand to assist County citizens with mitigating flooding at their homes or businesses. County residents may pick up sand at the following locations: