As El Niño storms pound state, Merced takes precautions

Amid El Niño rainstorms throughout the week, the National Weather Service on Wednesday issued wind and flood advisories for Merced, and local fire stations had sandbags ready for residents worried about flooding.

Winds in Merced were expected to range from 15 mph to 25 mph until 4 p.m. Wednesday, with gusts up to 40 mph. The National Weather Service also issued a hazardous weather outlook, predicting thunderstorms for the San Joaquin Valley throughout the day and night Wednesday, along with a flood advisory for urban areas.

Total rainfall for Tuesday set a record at 0.63 inches, and rain continued to fall Wednesday. By about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Merced received 0.48 inches of rain, with more pounding down. Wednesday’s rainfall put Merced at 4.91 inches since the rainy season began Oct. 1.

No roads in Merced County were closed as of Wednesday afternoon, but some flooding was reported in Merced on Childs Avenue near intersections on G Street and Martin Luther King Jr., a spokeswoman for the California Department of Transportation said.

About 750 residents took advantage of the sandbags available at county fire stations, said Jeremy Rahn, battalion chief for Merced’s Office of Emergency Services. Rahn said there was no imminent threat of flooding, but the sandbags were available as a precaution.

Rahn advised residents not to drive cars down flooded streets and to keep children away from waterways during extreme weather conditions.

In Yosemite National Park, Wawona Road was closed Tuesday night near Badger Pass after a commercial tour bus drove off the roadway. One of the 54 passengers was hurt when it veered off the snowy road around 4 p.m. That person had minor injuries but did not accept medical treatment. The road was closed temporarily, and Badger Pass visitors were allowed to exit the park.

The National Weather Service is predicting more rain will fall Thursday morning before tapering off Friday.

Across the state, countless Californians tried to protect their property after the first El Niño storms descended on California this week and brought wet, windy weather to an area stretching to the Gulf Coast.

Those storms dumped nearly 3 inches of rain Tuesday on Southern California as winter’s most powerful El Niño storm so far pushed into the state Wednesday.

Driving rain inundated the Bay Area during the morning commute, causing nearly two dozen crashes, toppling trees, and flooding streets and streams. Officials shut down San Francisco’s iconic cable cars, and buses were used to serve riders.

The system pushed south toward Los Angeles, stirring high waves in the ocean and causing extensive flooding in the San Fernando Valley that swamped cars in deep water.

It packed colder temperatures, stronger winds and heavier rainfall than the previous storms that have lined up since the weekend and brought much-needed rain to the drought-stricken state.

In all, the current storm was expected to dump as much as 3 more inches of rain in coastal and valley areas and up to 4 inches at higher elevations, National Weather Service meteorologist Curt Kaplan said.

This story was originally published January 6, 2016 at 6:32 PM with the headline "As El Niño storms pound state, Merced takes precautions."