Agencies across the region are preparing for Wednesday’s expected rainfall.
There are a couple of problem spots for flooding throughout San Luis Obispo County crews are watching out for, including San Luis Bay Drive in San Luis Obispo and Highway 1 and 13th Street in Oceano.
In addition to possible flooding, emergency officials will be keeping an eye on holiday travel and nearby burn scars.
San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties have seen their share of wildfires in recent months, and the burn scars bring a threat of debris flow or mudslides.
“We do expect that this winter could cause another debris flow so we continue to operate at a level one operation activation of our emergency activation center,” said Rob Lewin, Director of the Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Services.
But debris flow and mudslides are not likely for Wednesday’s storm.
“For now, it looks like this could be a good rain for us, get the brush growing again,” Lewin added.
In San Luis Obispo County, public works crews start going out in September to reduce any flooding threat by cleaning gutters, culverts, and storm drains of excess vegetation and trash.
The rain is expected to arrive on one of the busiest travel days of the year, which will no doubt make for a busy day for law enforcement.
The California Highway Patrol is preparing for a maximum enforcement period from Wednesday to Sunday.
“They’ll be out there making sure roadways are clear, helping all the disabled motorists out there, in addition to enforcing the law and making sure people are doing what they are doing, what they need to be doing,” said Lt. Greg Klingenberg.
If the roadway does become unsafe, CHP will take appropriate action.
“[We’ll] shut it down if we have to, we’ll try not to. But we’ll work in conjunction with our partner agencies and make sure the roads are as clear as they can be,” Lt. Klingenberg added.
Several auto mechanics say they’ve seen an increase in customers making sure things run smoothly before they hit the wet roadways during the holiday season.
