SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Residents of a Northern California community were ordered to evacuate ahead of imminent flooding, and evacuation warnings were in place elsewhere in rural parts of the region on New Year’s Day after a powerful storm brought drenching rain or heavy snowfall to much of the state, breaching levees, snarling traffic and closing major highways.
Even after the storm moved through, major flooding occurred in agricultural areas about 20 miles south of Sacramento, where rivers swelled beyond their banks and inundated dozens of cars along State Route 99.
Emergency crews rescued motorists on New Year’s Eve into Sunday morning and the highway remained closed. Crews on Sunday found one person dead inside a submerged vehicle near Route 99, Dan Quiggle, deputy fire chief for operations for Cosumnes Community Service District Fire Department, told The Sacramento Bee.
Sacramento County authorities issued an evacuation order late Sunday for residents of the low-lying community of Point Pleasant near Interstate 5, citing imminent and dangerous flooding. Residents of the nearby communities of Glanville Tract and Franklin Pond were told to prepare to leave before more roadways are cut off by rising water and evacuation becomes impossible.
“It is expected that the flooding from the Cosumnes River and the Mokelumne River is moving southwest toward I-5 and could reach these areas in the middle of the night,” the Sacramento County Office of Emergency Services said on Twitter Sunday afternoon. “Livestock in the affected areas should be moved to higher ground.”
To the north in the state’s capital, crews cleared downed trees from roads and sidewalks as at least 17,000 customers were still without power Sunday, down from more than 150,000 a day earlier, according to a Sacramento Municipal Utility District online map.
Near Lake Tahoe, dozens of drivers were rescued on New Year’s Eve along Interstate 80 after cars spun out in the snow during the blizzard, the California Department of Transportation said. The key route to the mountains from the San Francisco Bay Area reopened early Sunday to passenger vehicles with chains.
“The roads are extremely slick so let’s all work together and slow down so we can keep I-80 open,” the California Highway Patrol said on Twitter. Several other highways, including State Route 50, also reopened.
More than 4 feet of snow had accumulated in the high Sierra Nevada, and the Mammoth Mountain Ski Area said heavy, wet snow would cause major delays in chairlift openings. On Saturday, the resort reported numerous lift closings, citing high winds, low visibility and ice.
A so-called atmospheric river storm pulled in a long and wide plume of moisture from the Pacific Ocean. Flooding and rock slides closed portions of roads across the state.
Rainfall in downtown San Francisco hit 5.46 inches on New Year’s Eve, making it the second-wettest day on record, behind a November 1994 deluge, the National Weather Service said. Videos on Twitter showed mud-colored water streaming along San Francisco streets, and a staircase in Oakland turned into a veritable waterfall by heavy rains.
In Southern California, several people were rescued after floodwaters inundated cars in San Bernardino and Orange counties. No major injuries were reported.
With the region drying out on New Year’s Day and no rainfall expected during Monday’s Rose Parade in Pasadena, spectators began staking out their spots for the annual floral spectacle.
The rain was welcomed in drought-parched California. The past three years have been the state’s driest on record — but much more precipitation is needed to make a significant difference.
Nurse Katie Leonard, left, hands a cup of hot tea to Patsy Costello, 88, as she sits trapped in her vehicle for over an hour on Astrid Drive in Pleasant Hill, Calif., on Saturday, Dec. 31, 2022. Costello drove her car on the flooded street thinking she could make it when it stalled in the two feet of water. After two hours the water had receded about a foot making it easier to rescue her. Police were called but stood by and watched after calling in a tow truck to help pull the car out of the water. Nurse Katie Leonard, of Pleasant Hill, lives down the block used her kayak to bring Costello hot tea, blankets, food and a phone to call a friend. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group via AP) 
Nurse Katie Leonard, left, assists Scott Mathers, right, as they rescue Mathers’ mother, Patsy Costello, 88, after being trapped in her vehicle for over an hour on Astrid Drive in Pleasant Hill, Calif., on Saturday, Dec. 31, 2022. Costello drove her car on the flooded street thinking she could make it when it stalled in the two feet of water. After two hours the water had receded about a foot making it easier to rescue her. Police were called but stood by and watched after calling in a tow truck to help pull the car out of the water. Nurse Katie Leonard, of Pleasant Hill, lives down the block used her kayak to bring Costello hot tea, blankets, food and a phone to call a friend. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group via AP) 
Pedestrians walk along a road as a snow plow works in South Lake Tahoe, Calif., Saturday, Dec. 31, 2022. A winter storm warning has been issued for the greater Lake Tahoe area until Sunday. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP) 
Traffic maneuvers around a fallen tree after a it was blown over by a passing storm in the Van Nuys section of Los Angeles on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023. California was drying out and digging out on New Year’s Day after a powerful storm brought drenching rain or heavy snowfall to much of the state, snarling traffic and closing highways. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel) 
Traffic maneuvers around a fallen tree after a it was blown over by a passing storm in the Van Nuys section of Los Angeles on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023. California was drying out and digging out on New Year’s Day after a powerful storm brought drenching rain or heavy snowfall to much of the state, snarling traffic and closing highways. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel) 
This Saturday, Dec 31, 2022, photo released by Caltrans District 3, California Department of Transportation crews clear the road on Highway 50 over Echo Summit for avalanche control work in South Lake Tahoe, Calif. Highway 50 is now back open to traffic. Interstate 80 remains closed. California was drying out and digging out on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023, New Year’s Day after a powerful storm brought drenching rain or heavy snowfall to much of the state, snarling traffic and closing highways. (Caltrans District 3 via AP) 
This Saturday, Dec 31, 2022, photo released by Caltrans District 3 shows vehicles stranded for several hours waiting for to clean up the roadway at Highway 50 closed at Sand Flat to Meyers due to weather conditions in Pyramid Creek, Calif. Highway 50 is now back open to traffic. Interstate 80 remains closed. California was drying out and digging out on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023, New Year’s Day after a powerful storm brought drenching rain or heavy snowfall to much of the state, snarling traffic and closing highways. (Caltrans District 3 via AP) 
This image taken Saturday, Dec 31, 2022 and released by California Highway Patrol Truckee, vehicles stranded are stranded along Interstate 80 at the Nevada State line and Colfax, Calif. Driving conditions are dangerous and treacherous, travel is not advised. There are dozens and dozens of vehicles stuck on the freeway and county roads, and we are responding to calls as Calif. California was drying out and digging out on New Year’s Day after a powerful storm brought drenching rain or heavy snowfall to much of the state, snarling traffic and closing highways. (California Highway Patrol Truckee via AP) 
This image taken Saturday, Dec 31, 2022 and released by California Highway Patrol Truckee, vehicles stranded are stranded along Interstate 80 at the Nevada State line and Colfax, Calif. Driving conditions are dangerous and treacherous, travel is not advised. There are dozens and dozens of vehicles stuck on the freeway and county roads, and we are responding to calls as Calif. California was drying out and digging out on New Year’s Day after a powerful storm brought drenching rain or heavy snowfall to much of the state, snarling traffic and closing highways. (California Highway Patrol Truckee via AP) 
This Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023, photo released by Caltrans District 3, shows Sierra highway back open but chain controls remain in effect as crews clean up in South Lake Tahoe, Calif. California was drying out and digging out on New Year’s Day after a powerful storm brought drenching rain or heavy snowfall to much of the state, snarling traffic and closing highways. (Caltrans District 3 via AP) 
Three vehicles are submerged on Dillard Road west of Highway 99 in south Sacramento County in Wilton, Calif., Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023, after heavy rains on New Year’s Eve produced levee breaks. Saturday’s system was warmer and wetter, while storms this week will be colder, said Hannah Chandler-Cooley, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Sacramento. The Sacramento region could receive a total of 4 to 5 inches (10 to 13 centimeters) of rain over the week, Chandler-Cooley said. (Hector Amezcua/The Sacramento Bee via AP) 
In this photo provided by Caltrans District 3, several large boulders lie in the street that fell onto Highway 50 just east of Kyburz during a storm in El Dorado National Park, Calif., Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023. Fortunately, no vehicles were hit. (Caltrans District 3 via AP)
It was the first of several storms expected to roll across the state in the span of a week. Saturday’s system was warmer and wetter, while storms this week will be colder, said Hannah Chandler-Cooley, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Sacramento.
The Sacramento region could receive a total of 4 to 5 inches of rain over the week, Chandler-Cooley said.
Another round of heavy showers was also forecast for Southern California on Tuesday or Wednesday, the National Weather Service’s Los Angeles-area office said.
