SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Officials are warning greater Sacramento region residents of more rain on the way this coming weekend. They’re calling it a “dynamic and dangerous situation.”
One main message being relayed is for people to be aware of what’s going on in their area and to be ready to follow officials directions to stay safe.
Nearly 20 people have lost their lives in the past seven storms that have hit Northern California since New Year's Eve.
“Tragically there have been several people that have lost their lives because of these storms,” said a spokesperson from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
One of those storms caused several residents in the Lemon Hill area to lose power for over 3 days.
Juan Trujillo is a Lemon Hill resident who says he lost everything in his fridge and freezer because of the outage. The father of two also said he had a hard time leaving his home to get new food because powerline poles had to be replaced on his street.
"It's a little upsetting. I mean it's really nobody's fault. But it made me realize that I wasn't prepared for a situation like this," said Trujillo. "Preparing now is just getting a couple of backup generators… In the event that we need to use it for our deep freezer, or maybe even to entertain the kids."
State and county officials say seven locations, including the Sacramento River in Butte County, Bear Creek at Mckee Road and the San Joaquin River Area, are expected to exceed flood stage in the coming days.
Officials say half the storm's fatalities were related to drivers and cars but half were preventable by looking at road closure signs and being careful to avoid driving into standing water.
“Don't stand or drive in water. There are dangers in the waters. These flood waters have dangerous debris,” said a FEMA spokesperson. “The flood waters can rise rapidly creating very life-threatening situations. So please stay aware of our surroundings."
Trujillo says he will be heeding that warning and plans to stay at home with his family until it’s safe to leave.
Officials say folks who were not affected by the previous storms are not immediately safe from effects this weekend. They also say it’s not too late to prepare ahead of the storm by reaching out to friends and family to make sure they’re okay.
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