More Rain

This is it; the last day of the year. And it’s wet and stormy. I can hear the rain pounding down this morning, just as I did last night when I went to bed. According to all of the experts, a flood surge will be coming down the river today and tonight as the storm continues, and releases from Shasta Dam will add to that volume of water. Here’s the official forecast for the river levels.

Hamilton City 1 am stage 143.0 ft forecast to rise to near 148.0 ft late Saturday evening then forecast to recede to near 146.5 ft   Sunday morning monitor stage 143.0 ft, flood stage 148.0 ft

Ord Ferry 1 am stage 112.6 ft forecast to crest near 118.0 ft  early Sunday morning monitor stage 110.0 ft, flood stage 114.0 ft danger stage 122.6 ft

For us, Hamilton City is the closest point (5 miles east) to the Sacramento River. And if we were to visit my oldest daughter in Durham, we would travel there by way of the Ord Ferry road over the river. Neither of those places is close enough to pose any threat for us, just an inconvenience. The only river close to us, Stony Creek, is running high right now, but it’s not anywhere near flood stage. Traditionally, the western side of the Sacramento River floods less often than the eastern side.

But all of this talk of flooding has to be worrying those who live in the Natomas flood plain, just north of downtown Sacramento. The newspaper has been running a series of articles that detail the extent of flooding possible if and when a levee fails. And fail they will. It’s only a matter of time. When I was growing up, my grandfather lived in Sacramento and I remember the news accounts of the flooding that occurred almost annually in the 1940’s and 50’s.  

And here’s the weather forecast; Today: Windy with a heavy, steady rain this morning. Rain showers continuing this afternoon. High 56F. Winds S at 20 to 30 mph. Rainfall possibly over two inches. Tonight: Considerable cloudiness with occasional rain showers. Low 44F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 60%. Tomorrow: Wind driven rain showers early with a steady, soaking rain later in the day. High 52F. Winds SSE at 20 to 30 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall near a half an inch.