Quick Take
Heavy winds caused widespread disruptions including downed trees, power line, and power outages across Santa Cruz County on Sunday. While the wind calmed overnight, more rain was still in the forecast, with up to 3.5 inches possible in the Santa Cruz Mountains and 1 to 2 inches in lower county elevations between Sunday evening and late Monday night.
Relentless winds whipped around Santa Cruz County throughout Sunday, downing power lines and trees while closing roads and putting nearly 30,000 county residents out of power. Per PowerOutage.us, more than 20,000 remained without power as of 5 a.m. Monday in Santa Cruz County, among more than a half a million Californians in that situation as the storm hammered the state.
Winds had died down by early Monday morning, though the National Weather Service (NWS) was forecasting rain to continue through Monday evening, with thunderstorms possible.
Falling trees and power lines shut down a number of county roads at various points Sunday. The ramp from northbound Highway 1 to northbound Highway 17 was blocked for approximately two hours, Soquel San Jose Road was shut down near Olson Road north of Soquel Village for much of the day before reopening. Felton Empire Road reopened around 11 a.m. after crews cleared downed power lines and tree branches that were blocking the road.
In Santa Cruz, bike and pedestrian access was closed along West Cliff Drive between Woodrow Avenue and David Way due to high wind and high surf advisories. The Murray Street Bridge was also closed between Seabright Avenue and Loma Alta Lane.
Visit CHP’s X (formerly Twitter) page for updates, and click here for the latest news on county-maintained roads.
Santa Cruz High School was without power Sunday evening, Principal Michelle Poirier wrote in an email to school families, “and PG&E does not anticipate that it will be on in the morning. School will be open, and I encourage you to have your student dress warmly as there will not be heat in the building.”
NWS meteorologist Cindy Palmer said that as of 6 p.m. Sunday, the Santa Cruz Mountains were still seeing wind gusts between 45 and 55 mph. Lower county elevations were experiencing less intense winds, but gusts were still reaching between 25 and 35 mph.
The agency’s high wind warning would remain in effect until 10 p.m. Sunday, but Palmer said that “we’re probably past the worst of it.”
“But we’re still seeing some pretty strong gusts out there, and they should taper off through the evening and especially through the overnight hours,” she said.
While the wind was set to die down, there is still more rain to come. Palmer said from Sunday evening through Monday night, higher county elevations could see 3 to 3.5 more inches of rain, while lower elevations are likely to see between 1 and 2 inches of rain.
Palmer added that scattered showers would persist through the end of the week following the main storm’s conclusion. Those could bring half an inch to 1 inch of rain to most areas in the county through Friday.
Palmer said the San Lorenzo River’s water level had begun to fall after cresting just over 14 feet Sunday afternoon, putting it in the “monitor stage.” Its water level was at 12.45 feet as of 6 p.m. The Pajaro River’s water level was still rising, but was expected to crest on Monday afternoon, well beneath its monitor stage of 22 feet.
County staff will continue to monitor both the San Lorenzo and Pajaro rivers, as well as Soquel Creek, Aptos Creek, Corralitos Creek and Salsipuedes Creek, according to social media posts. County residents who live in flood-prone areas can fill sandbags at pickup locations here.
For an overview of everything from incoming weather to stream gauges and power outages, visit the county’s map-based, interactive situational awareness platform here.
Sign up for local emergency alerts at CruzAware. For more preparation tips, visit the Office of Response, Recovery and Resilience website.
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