The Madera County Sheriff’s Office is issuing an evacuation warning for Road 225 between Cascadel Road, including the area within Sierra National Forest, due to an incoming storm with possible debris & mud flow concerns.
The weather event is expected to include gusty south winds, significant mountain snow and prolonged periods of moderate to heavy rain with cold temperatures. The front will slowly progress into the south half of the territory overnight through Wednesday morning then stall and pivot over the south during the day Wednesday, where it could remain through Thursday.
The Sheriff’s Office feels the threat level is elevated enough that an evacuation warning is necessary.
The affected area includes Kinsman Flat Subdivision, Sagnaw Creek Subdivision, and Cascadel Road at Cascadel Heights Drive.
Additionally, PG&E meteorologists say the strong storm will likely impact much of its service area through Friday.
PG&E is performing debris flow modeling analysis of recent wildfire locations and has also deployed specialists to perform assessments.
Winter Storm Warning
The National Weather Service has placed a Winter Storm Warning in effect from 10 p.m. Tuesday through 4 a.m. Friday with projected rainfall totals between 4 to 7 inches.
Madera officials say with that level of rain, there is a potential for debris and mud flow from the Creek Fire burn scar.
Debris and mud flows may not impact every home, but could cause damage to roadways, resulting in homes being isolated from main travel routes.
Power Outages Expected
PG&E says this storm has the potential to produce customer outages. They’ve emphasized that possible weather-related outages in the coming days are not due to Public Safety Power Shutoffs.
“PG&E has a plan to respond to potential outages, based on our Storm Outage Prediction Model, which includes staffing crews in these locations to respond to outages safely and as quickly as possible,” spokesperson Denny Boyles says in a news release.
Getting Prepared
The Madera County Sheriff’s Office is encouraging residents to begin gathering important documents, medications and necessities.
Officials say people should be prepared to leave immediately if conditions warrant. Deputies will be checking water levels of creeks in the area and monitoring the impacts of the storm, the Sherrif’s Office said.
PG&E is encouraging residents to monitor local agencies and the National Weather Service for updated notifications and evacuation messages.
