Storm Gives Way to Sunny Weekend

The fast-moving rainstorm that drenched Ventura County dissipated Friday, and forecasters predict a breezy, warm and sunny weekend.

Patchy morning fog is expected to burn off Saturday and Sunday, leaving clear skies and temperatures in the upper 60s to low 70s.

“We are definitely going to have a drying period,” said meteorologist Bob Hoffer of the National Weather Service, adding that the Pacific storm was not unusual for this time of year. “We have to remember, it is the rainy season.”

But this Pacific storm--which caused dozens of traffic accidents, flooding and the threat of mudslides on fire-scorched hillsides--hit earlier than typical storms for this time of year. Some parts of the county received more than twice their normal amount of rainfall.

“I think we have quite a bit more this year,” said Dolores Taylor, the county’s senior hydrologist. “We can’t expect any relief until almost April 1.”

The storm dropped 3 1/2 inches of rain in parts of Ventura, and more than 2 1/2 inches on hillsides laid bare by a 475-acre arson fire last month. Despite a flash flood watch, the steady rainfall did not cause any mudslides, leaving the hills safely intact.

“We are fairly lucky this whole storm was light,” Taylor said. “The fire areas were pretty much spared.”

The county’s Flood Control Department reported 2 inches of rain near the Grand fire burn area in Fillmore and Santa Paula.

The smallest rainfall amounts were reported in the east end of the county where 1 1/2 inches fell, compared with 3 1/2 in the mountains above Ojai.

“Obviously with those hills being so dry they can sponge off a lot of that rain if it is falling steady,” Ventura City Manager Donna Landeros said.

Taking no chances, however, city officials urged homeowners near Ventura’s burn areas to prepare for the worst by stacking sandbags around their houses to block potential landslides.

Michael Zelcer, 42, is one of those homeowners. He lives at the north end of Aliso Street, which was hit hard by the Oct. 25 Poli Street fire.

So far the hillsides on either side of Aliso Street have remained intact. But Zelcer and other residents of Aliso Street know that can change if the rain continues.

“Because it’s been so dry, the ground isn’t saturated yet,” Zelcer said. “If we have more than 2 inches of rain in 12 hours we’ve got problems.”

The city is working with a conservation agency to plant seeds on the hillsides in the coming weeks before other winter storms bear down on the exposed hills.

“That will help to some degree,” said Landeros, adding that residents should quickly remove any debris that may have slid down near their homes. “One of the things the homeowners should be doing is clearing debris so when water comes down it is diverted.”

Taylor said the steady rainfall will benefit the burned areas of the county. “It really gives an opportunity for the native grasses to regrow,” she said. “Gentle rain is the best we could hope for.”

In El Rio, the tiny community lived up to its name as a sluggish river of rainwater caused by a clogged storm drain flooded about 20 residences. No one was evacuated and the damage was limited mostly to garages, county officials said.

Among the residents who filled sandbags Thursday was 45-year-old Richard Bergman, who lives on Burson Way. The water began rising at about 8:30 a.m., he said, and it kept on rising. “I was walking through water knee-deep all day,” he said.

Bergman’s house was not affected by the flooding that had the street closed for more than five hours. “I guess it’s just built on higher ground,” he said.

Other houses weren’t so lucky, and when it appeared the rising water was not going to recede, Bergman and four of his neighbors decided they had to help.

“We went to the store and got 20 sandbags, and we came back and started filling them up. My neighbor’s dad went and got a ton of sand, and we filled up 13 bags and used them on my neighbor’s house,” Bergman said.

They ended up shoveling three tons of sand and filled enough sandbags for five houses, he said. “Whenever we saw one with water in front of it, we went up and started sandbagging,” he said.

Along the coast, dirty brown water spilled out of storm drains and rivers. Choppy waves and concerns about water pollution kept many surfers onshore.

“The surf is really bumpy, lumpy and ugly,” said San Buenaventura State Beach Lifeguard Supervisor Steve White. “Today they probably will [not be here] because the surf is no good, about 3 to 4 feet.”

Authorities reported no sewage problems caused by the storm.

“We received no indications that there were any sewage releases from the storms. We have not posted any beach closures,” said Elizabeth Huff, a district coordinator for the Ventura County Environmental Health division.

Wilson is a Times staff writer. Steepleton is a correspondent.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

County RainfallHere are rainfall figures from the Ventura County Flood Control Department for the 24-hour period ending at 10 p.m. Friday . Oct. 1 is the beginning of the official rain year.

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Rainfall Rainfall Normal rainfall Location last 24 hours since Oct. 1 to date Camarillo 0.08 3.12 1.77 Casitas Dam 0.28 7.58 2.67 Casitas Rec. Center 0.79 7.18 2.85 Fillmore 0.43 6.30 2.53 Matilija Dam 0.39 8.24 2.92 Moorpark 0.43 4.07 1.86 Upper Ojai 0.51 7.17 2.57 Oxnard 0.12 3.27 1.60 Piru 0.28 4.62 1.99 Port Hueneme 0.08 2.95 1.67 Santa Paula 0.71 5.45 2.22 Simi Valley 0.16 3.62 1.82 Thousand Oaks 0.16 3.18 1.63 Ventura Govt. Center 0.24 4.20 1.83

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