WILTON, Calif. — It has been one month since the New Years Eve storm flooded many of our communities. One of the areas hardest hit was Wilton.
"To The Point with Alex Bell" host Alex Bell toured the damage in Wilton with the area's volunteer fire protection district. She also spoke with a couple who were rescued from their vehicle.
Where is Wilton?
Wilton is located in the southern part of Sacramento County and has a population of over 5,000.
Some of the people who live and work there say everybody is close with each other.
"This community is very spread out," said Gino Buranzon, the fire captain of the Wilton Fire Protection District. "That being said, it's a very close-knit community."
Other members of the fire protection district agree, like firefighter Anthony Conzatti who says "everyone's a friend, everyone knows somebody."
New Year's Eve Storm experiences
Meteorologists forecasted storms would hit Sacramento on New Year's Eve, but no one could've prepared for how strong they were or the aftermath.
"Our first call was like 4 p.m.," said Wilton Fire Protection District firefighter, Steven Rath. "Then after that, it was nonstop the entire night."
Water quickly flooded the roads and since it was dark, drivers had no idea how deep it was. The conditions made responding to calls not only difficult but dangerous.
"When we talked about Wilton being an island, all of our exits were gone," said Buranzon. "So from us to Jackson Highway, [the] road was flooded. We, ourselves, in our high-water vehicle couldn't get through."
He says all the roads from Dillard to 99, Arno and Wilton Road were closed due to flooding.
"The water was getting up to the bridge and starting to damage the bridge, so we couldn't get out or get in that way either," said Buranzon, noting that's where he thinks the majority of people were trying to exit.
First responders say due to the New Year's Eve holiday, there were a lot of people on roads. The mix of major rain, winds and high traffic volumes on roads made for a "perfect storm."
Multiple major highways were being impacted such as Highway 99. The popular highway being closed diverted people to take backroads. Many of those roads go through or near WIlton, backing traffic up and slowing down rescue times.
"With our protection district, we don't have Swiftwater Rescue Services, we don't have boats, we don't have jet skis, we have PFDs, we have rope bags and we have helmets, and that's the extent of our Swiftwater component," said Buranzon.
He says the fire district was able to adapt to the "diverse situation" when calls were requesting rescues that would have been better suited for a boat or helicopter rescue or response.
According to a Wilton firefighter, about 50 calls came from the community asking for help.
"My company, we had 18 water rescues that night... I remember seeing hundreds of cars on the road just blocking off, abandoned, flashers on," said Conzatti. "We didn't know if people were inside or if they'd already evacuated. So anytime we get these calls for sinking vehicles, we've been looking around. It made it very difficult for us to find who actually was calling 911."
The water was so high in areas that cars were completely underwater. But still, people were driving through the flooded roads.
"Typically, [drivers] would probably get halfway into the floodwaters to where their engine would just cease. The floodwaters came about to maybe the base of their windowsill of the car," said Conzatti.
He says fire crews would have to wade through flooded roadways with a long tool to make sure they weren't walking into a ditch or a hole.
"I remember throughout the night, we were walking in waters that were up to our chests," said Conzatti.
But aside from helping people out of flooded areas, the fire district also had to deal with downed powerlines and trees causing damage. On top of that, temperatures were low and winds were strong.
"A lot of the people that we saved that night were elderly couples. When you get them into a colder climate in water up to their chest, that's a huge concern for us," said Buranzon. "The faster we could get out there to get them out and get them into a warm dry spot, the better for us."
The call for rescue
One of the calls for rescue that came into the district was from the Lockwoods, who were on their way home from grabbing Chinese food to celebrate a birthday.
"We start[ed] heading towards home and Wilton Road is closed. Dillard Road is closed. And we're going 'oh, great. Now what?'" said Sharon Lockwood.
The couple then thought about taking backroads since they had four-wheel drive and were confident they were going to be okay. That's when they got to Arno Road and saw just how high the water levels were.
"I mean, the water was six inches and then in less than 10 minutes, it was four and a half feet high up to the top of our truck," said Lockwood. "The engine was covered up and it was gone."
The couple then called 911 for help. While they waited, they noticed the water getting higher as the sun began to set.
"I started really panicking," said Lockwood, explaining how concerned she was about emergency services finding them. "Things are floating [around us] and I'm going 'okay, 911 wanted to get us to climb on the top of our truck' and I said 'I can’t. I’m 72 years old ma’am I'm gonna fall in the water if I do that.'"
Then help came in the form of the Wilton Fire Protection District. First responders said the area where the Lockwoods were stranded looked like a lake.
With the help of a phone flashlight, crews were able to find the Lockwoods.
"I remember looking back at my window and I see a little bright light from there, waving from their window," said Conzatti, saying this was what made responders get to the Lockwoods.
"Oh, I was so thankful that they were coming, I was just so grateful," said Lockwood. "I felt kind of stupid that we got to that position because everybody [was] just trying to get home and you know, should we have done something different? We're very lucky and we are very grateful to these firemen because I don't think they get the recognition they should get. I really appreciate it, they saved [our] lives."
Who is the Wilton Fire Protection District
Primarily a volunteer department, the district is limited to those who choose to help their community.
"We have three full-time captains and the rest are shift firefighters," said Buranzon. "They come in, they work a shift and they get a stipend."
The firefighters ABC10 spoke to for this story say they truly feel like a member of the community.
"When we see people out in the community, they know who we are, we know who they are," said Rath. "It creates that really tight bond between the fire department and the community. Even on off days just to be able to help the community because it is such an awesome community and a tight-knit group."
To learn more about the Wilton Fire Protection District, click HERE.
