Skies cleared Monday over a waterlogged South County, but more
rain is expected the rest of the week. Since Friday, 1.2 inches of
rain fell in Gilroy, compared to the nearly 5 inches that fell the
weekend of Jan. 5 and 6.
Skies cleared Monday over a waterlogged South County, but more rain is expected the rest of the week. Since Friday, 1.2 inches of rain fell in Gilroy, compared to the nearly 5 inches that fell the weekend of Jan. 5 and 6.
The wet weather has pushed the seasonal rainfall total to 12.05 inches. That’s nearly an inch more than the 11.51 inches that fell from July 1, 2006 to June 30 2007.
Despite all the rain, police and fire reported no major incidents, though the California Highway Patrol reported six accidents, one of which involved an injury.
“For South County we had less crashes this weekend than normal,” said CHP spokesman Chris Armstrong. “Weather was not a factor. This storm was not as bad as the one two weeks ago.”
The only major incident as a result of the most recent rains was a 35-foot tree that fell on a car traveling on Eigleberry Street between Sixth and Seventh streets at 10:50 a.m. Friday, trapping the driver and a passenger inside the vehicle. Their conditions were unknown Monday, but their injuries were not considered life threatening. They were headed northbound on Eigleberry Street in a blue Dodge Neon when a large tree tipped over and landed on their car, witnesses said. The branches – up to two feet in diameter at points where it hit the car – crushed the trunk of the car and smashed the front window, pushing the dashboard down onto the people seated in the front.
The rain Sunday resulted in one minor power outage on Leavesley Road. About 35 customers were without power when a fuse blew at 2:30 p.m., said PG&E spokesman Brian Swanson. Power was restored at 4:45 p.m.
The onslaught of rain has brought reservoir totals to 58 percent of capacity, said Susan Siravo, Santa Clara Valley Water District spokesperson.
“Our reservoirs are in good shape right now,” she said, adding that the totals represent 110 percent of normal for this time of year. Yet, she cautioned that customers should continue to conserve water.
“We really want people to look at water conservation as they do recycling, as a part of their lifestyle. It’s good for the environment and cost savings,” she said. “But overall we are in good shape in terms of water supply for this month, but who knows, we could have a dry February and March.”
But January looks like it will continue its wet pattern, according to Steve Anderson, a forecaster with the National Weather Service. Anderson said the next series of storms, expected to hit today, Thursday and Saturday, are the result of a weak cold front moving through the region.
