SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY, Calif. — The risk of a potential levee failure in San Joaquin County is prompting officials to declare a local emergency.
According to the San Joaquin County Office of Emergency Management, the problem area is along Old River on Victoria Island.
“Public safety is a top priority for the County,” said Sierra Brucia, Director of the Office of Emergency Services. “By proclaiming a local emergency, the County is provided more authority to better facilitate the response operations and allows the issuance of protective orders as needed to ensure the safety of our community members.”
Engineers in the Reclamation District found slumping along the Old River levee on Oct. 21. While they took some emergency measures by adding temporary protective barriers, the levee is still at risk, officials said.
Failure could translate to extensive damage toward agricultural lands, disruptions along Highway 4 and compromised drinking water sources.
KSN Inc. has spoken with community members behind the levee about emergency protocols and have also provided updates on repairs. The firm is working with authorities to stabilize and strengthen the levee infrastructure.
“KSN Inc. continues to work alongside the County of San Joaquin and the Department of Water Resources to prevent the risk of this levee failure,” said Christopher Neudeck, KSN Inc. Principal Engineer and Incident Commander. “With the support of the County proclaiming a local emergency, we are able to request additional state and federal assistance to support mitigation and technical response efforts.”
Meanwhile, county officials are calling on people to prepare in order to protect their homes from a potential levee failure.
The county's advice is available below:
- Sign up for SJReady Alerts by going to www.sjready.org.
- Make an emergency plan with their family and consider each individual’s unique needs.
- Build an emergency supply kit that will last each person for 72 hours.
- Take pictures of their home and property including vehicles, boats, and farm equipment.
- Move valuables from basements and ground floods to higher levels if possible.
- Place sandbags anywhere water may enter their home.
- Stay informed. Listen to your local radio or TV station to stay up to date.
- If instructed to evacuate by local authorities, leave immediately.
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