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Flash floods strike Kern
Kern Valley, lower river and area near Frazier Park take brunt of weather
| Sunday, Jul 13 2008 10:33 PM
Last Updated: Monday, Jul 14 2008 10:35 AM
• Monday morning update: All roadways were open following flooding in the Lake Isabella area over the weekend, according to California Highway Patrol officers.
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A firefighter on the end of the Kern County rescue helicopter #408 hoist rescues a flood victim from a house on the end of the paved section of Commercial Avenue in Lake Isabella Sunday evening after Erskine Creek surrounded the home due to flash flooding in the Piute Mountain area. Three people were rescued from the roof of this house and several others in the area.
Kern County road worker Jerry Puckett, center, assesses the road damage Sunday evening on Lake Isabella Boulevard, as Erskine Creek floods the area for the second night in a row.
Lake Isabella residents have their umbrellas and cameras as they watch the rescues from residents who lived along Erskine Creek Sunday evening as the waters continue to rise after flash flooding.
A Kern County firefighter with Keene Helitack helicopter #408 rescues this lady and her dog along with three other family members and a second dog, Sunday evening from her home in Lake Isabella as Erskine Creek rises around it after flash floods in the Piute Mountains.
There may still be some debris on the roads, but all are now passable, officers said. Several roads, including a portion of Lake Isabella Boulevard, were closed Sunday when rains caused a flash flood.
Water walloped Kern County Sunday when floods forced Kern Valley residents from homes, a mud-laden Kern River required the rescue of one teen and a flash flood closed a mountain road west of Frazier Park.
Here are details of the day’s main events:
KERN VALLEY
Some Kern Valley residents fled their homes Sunday evening because of massive flooding.
Shortly before 6 p.m., officials advised those in the Kelso Valley area to Rocky Point as well as those along Erskine Creek to immediately evacuate.
Sheets of water 100 feet wide flowed through the area, officials said. The same area flooded Saturday.
Helicopter crews from the Kern County Fire Department rescued seven people and two dogs from two houses along Erskine Creek, including a rooftop rescue of three people. Water rose around the homes but the structures stayed dry as of 9 p.m.
Bodfish resident Melody Batelaan, whose husband, Michael Batelaan, is part-owner of the Kern River Courier, said the flooding was scary even though the couple was in no immediate danger.
Her husband’s sister lives on a hill above Erskine Creek and called when floodwaters rushed past. “It sounded like a freight train coming,” Melody Batelaan said of the sound coming over the phone.
As of 9:30 p.m., no buildings had been damaged, officials said.
A unified command of federal, state and local fire and law enforcement crews working the Piute fire handled Sunday’s flood and evacuation efforts.
Some roads and highway on-ramps were expected to remain closed through much of the night.
The Piute fire was partly responsible for mud slides and floods in the area, said National Weather Service Meteorologist Daniel Harty.
“When all of that vegetation gets burnt away, that’s what holds the ground in place,” Harty said. “It makes the area much more susceptible to mud slides.”
The amount of rain that had fallen by Sunday evening wasn’t a whole lot, but impressive totals didn’t matter much in this case, Harty said.
Canyons and creeks simply couldn’t handle the cumulative amounts trickling down from higher elevations. Harty described the flooding as a kind of delayed reaction.
Light rainfall was expected to continue through Sunday evening, Harty said.
Shortly after 9 p.m., residents reported rain in the area.
More rain could fall today, Harty said.
KERN RIVER
A group of firefighters returning from the Piute fire near Lake Isabella helped Search and Rescue crews nab a teen stranded on rocks in the Kern River.
The seven firefighters were flagged down while headed home, the Kern County Fire Department reported, and called for backup. The teen, David Robinson, got stuck while rock-hopping. No one was injured.
Rescue crews worked in water so muddy it looked almost like chocolate syrup.
Tom Peltier, a rafting guide for Kern River Outfitters, had a group on the lower Kern Sunday.
Peltier, who spoke by phone Sunday evening while enjoying dinner at the Kern River Brewing Co., said he’d never seen the river so muddy.
“It smells like potting soil,” he said. “It’s really like walking into a nursery.”
His group had a great time in Sunday’s soup, he added: All of them took the 15-foot plunge off Jump Rock, though he refrained.
LOCKWOOD VALLEY ROAD
Around 3 p.m., a flash flood closed Lockwood Valley Road, which spans west from Frazier Park to Highway 33, the California Highway Patrol reported.
Crews from several Kern and Ventura county agencies found boulders, mud and water in the roadway, reports show, but were able to clear the route of major debris. It remained closed to the public as of 9:45 p.m.
NOT OVER IN LAKE ISABELLA AREA
Flash flood warnings remained in effect Sunday night around Lake Isabella, which flooded Saturday and Sunday, closing Lake Isabella Boulevard both days.
A “horrendous” amount of precipitation in the Sequoia National Forest dampened ground and caused Erskine Creek to flood, cutting off 59 firefighters’ escape route Saturday evening when a road washed out, the Associated Press reported.
Christina Lilienthal, an interagency fire spokeswoman, said crews didn’t need the escape route but moved to higher ground as a precaution against rising waters. The road reopened Sunday afternoon.
— Californian photographer Casey Christie contributed to this report.