GOOD
MORNING. GOOD MORNING, FOLKS. I
WANT TO CALL THE MEETING. UH,
BUT THE HEARING TO START ONCE WE
GET OUR RESETTLED IN. ONCE AGAIN
THE CHAIRMAN FREDDY RODRIGUEZ
REGARDING HEARING JOINT
COMMITTEE ON EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT AND ALSO JOINT
OVERSIGHT HEARING ON CALIFORNIA
RESPONSE TO AND PREPAREDNESS FOR
EXTREME ATMOSPHERIC RIVER
INCIDENTS. AND ONCE AGAIN GOOD
MORNING, EVERYONE TO GET THIS,
UH MEETING TO ORDER FIRST I WANT
TO START BY THANKING MY
COLLEAGUES FOR JOINING ME THIS
MORNING AND ALSO WANT TO THANK
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S EDUARDO GARCIA,
CHAIR OF THE UTILITIES AND
ENERGY COMMITTEE. TODAY'S
HEARING IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO
HEAR FROM THE LEADING CLIMATE
SCIENTISTS AND RESEARCHERS ON
WHAT TYPE OF INCIDENTS ARE
EMERGENCY MANAGERS SHOULD BE
PREPARED FOR AND HOW WE CAN
IMPROVE LOCAL FORECAST MODELS.
TO IMPROVE MORE ACCURATELY
PREDICT LOCAL IMPACTS AND THE
NEED TO QUICKLY WARNED RESIDENTS
OF ANY DANGER FROM FLOODING OR
EXTENDED POWER OUTAGES. IT'S
ALSO AN OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR FROM
OUR COUNTIES FROM FOUR COUNTIES
THAT WERE SEVERELY IMPACTED BY
THE STORMS AND HOW WE AND HOW
THE STATE DEPARTMENT'S CONTINUE
TO ASSIST THESE COMMUNITIES TO
RECOVER. I WILL ALSO BE
INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE FROM
OUR LOCAL EMERGENCY MANAGERS
ABOUT THE PROGRESS THEY ARE
MAKING. AND IF THERE ARE ANY
UNMET NEEDS THE STATE CAMP
PROVIDE OR IF THERE ARE ANY
LESSONS LEARNED THAT WE SHARE
BEFORE THE NEXT DISASTER STRIKES
, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO
PROTECTING VULNERABLE RESIDENTS
AND MAKING OUR LIFELINE
INFRASTRUCTURE SYSTEMS SUCH AS
UTILITIES MORE RESILIENT TO
EXTREME WEATHER INCIDENTS. I'M
ALSO CONCERNED MORE THAN EVER
ABOUT OUR ABILITY TO RESPOND TO
TWO MAJOR DISASTERS AT ONE TIME.
ARE WE PREPARING FOR EVENTS
WHICH WE KNOW WILL COST LIVES,
PROPERTY AND MONEY. I HOPE
TODAY'S PANELISTS CAN WEIGH IN
ON THIS QUESTION FROM THEIR
UNIQUE PERSPECTIVES. BEFORE I
BEGIN. I WANT TO TURN IT OVER TO
MY CO CHAIR THAT WARDEN GARCIA
IF HE HAS ANY COMMENTS, AND FROM
THAT WANT TO OPEN IT UP TO OTHER
MEMBERS AS WELL. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR.
12.
JUST TRY. TESTING TESTING. I
MEAN, WHAT I HAVE TO SAY IS NOT
THAT IMPORTANT, BUT I DO HAVE
SOMETHING TO SAY, THOUGH. I DO
HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY. YEAH
YEAH, THANK YOU. YEAH, THEY'RE
VERY SOUND COMING. THAT'S RIGHT.
I THINK MY COLLEAGUES FOR
PRIORITIZING THIS IMPORTANT
TOPIC AND CONVENING ARE THREE
COMMITTEES NOT ALWAYS EASY TO
COORDINATE THREE PARTICULAR
BODIES TO COME TOGETHER FOR THIS
PARTICULAR SUBJECT. FOR THE
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA UTILITIES
WHO ARE PRESENT TODAY I CAN
REPORT THE SERIES OF STORMS IS
JANUARY WHERE THE WORST I HAVE
EVER EXPERIENCED. FOR HALF OF
SMUTS CUSTOMERS WERE IN THE DARK
AT ONE POINT DURING THE STORM.
RAINSTORMS BRING TO BEAR THE
CRITICAL QUESTIONS. WE'VE BEEN
ASKING. DURING RECENT EXTREME
EVENTS, BEALL WILDFIRES OR HEAT
WAVES OR WIND STORMS AND FLOODS.
HOW PREPARED IS OUR CRITICAL
INFRASTRUCTURE TO WITHSTAND THE
IMPACT OF MORE EXTREME WEATHER
FROM CLIMATE CHANGE? HOW DO WE
LEVERAGE RECOVERING WORK FROM
ONE DISASTER, ESPECIALLY FOR
UTILITY INFRASTRUCTURE TO
MITIGATE AGAINST AS MANY
POSSIBLE FUTURE DISASTERS? WHAT
CAN WE DO TO BETTER PLAN FOR
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS
HARDENED FOR THESE EVENTS? AND
HOW DO WE UPDATE OUR STANDARDS
TO REFLECT EXTREME EVENTS
BECOMING MORE COMMON? LOOK
FORWARD TO THESE AND MANY MORE
QUESTIONS BEING ANSWERED TODAY
AND THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING
IN THIS COMPREHENSIVE HEARING.
THANK YOU, SAM. REMEMBER ALSO
WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE SENATOR
ASHBY, WHO IS THE VICE CHAIR OF
THE JOINT COMMITTEE ON MERCHANT
PREPAREDNESS. THANK YOU FOR
JOINING US. AND I THINK YOU MAY
HAVE A FEW COMMENTS AS WELL.
THANK YOU. THIS WAS JUST A TEST
TO SEE IF YOU COULD PICK OUT THE
SENATOR AMONGST THE
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S. SO IF YOU DID
, THEN CONGRATULATIONS. YOU GET
A GOLD STAR FOR TODAY. WE ARE
JUST TRYING TO START RUMORS.
THIS REALLY WHY I'M HERE AND
ATTENDING AN ASSEMBLY HEARING. I
WANT TO THANK THE CHAIRMAN, BOTH
OF THEM AND ALL OF YOU FOR
COMING TO DO THIS HEARING. I
HAVE THE DISTINCT PLEASURE BEING
THE VICE CHAIR OF THE JOINT
COMMITTEE FOR EMERGENCY SERVICES
WITH THIS CHAIRMAN, AND I'M
REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO
WORKING WITH ALL OF YOU ON THE
EMERGENCIES THAT HAPPEN AROUND
THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA.
OBVIOUSLY THEY ARE AS BROAD AND
WIDE AND DEEP AS THE INDEPENDENT
DISTRICTS THAT WE EACH REPRESENT
COULD EVER PROVIDE. AND SO I'M
LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT
CONVERSATION. BUT I WANTED TO BE
HERE TODAY FOR TWO REASONS. ONE
TO REPRESENT THE SENATE AND LEND
MY SUPPORT TO THIS HEARING AND
TO THE PEOPLE WHO ARE TAKING
THEIR TIME TO PARTICIPATE IN THE
PANELS. AND TO HAVE THESE
DISCUSSIONS AROUND THE RECENT
STORMS AND TWO BECAUSE I AM THE
SENATOR FOR SACRAMENTO, ONE OF
THE HARDEST HIT COUNTIES IN THE
LAST FEW WEEKS, AND I AM VERY
PROUD OF SACRAMENTO COUNTY
EMERGENCY SERVICES TEAM. I'M
VERY PROUD OF SMUD. I'M VERY
PROUD OF THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO
AND THE CITY OF ELK GROVE. ALL
OF WHOM HANDLED EXTRAORDINARY
CIRCUMSTANCES. WE HAD FIVE LIVES
LOST OVER 1000 DOWN TREES. AT
ONE POINT, WE LOST TWO OF OUR
SMUD POWER PLANTS AND THE
LARGEST SUMP STATION. IN THE
CITY OF SACRAMENTO WAS RUNNING
ON A BACKUP GENERATOR. BUT WE
WERE ABLE TO PREVENT AN AWFUL
LOT OF DAMAGE AND LOST LIFE
BECAUSE OF THE CAREFUL PLANNING
AND CONSIDERATION AND THE HARD
WORK OF PEOPLE WHO WORK IN SMUD
AND IN OUR CITIES EVERY DAY, AND
SO, OUR FIRST RESPONDERS, I OWE
YOU A DEBT OF GRATITUDE. I'M SO
GRATEFUL TO YOU FOR YOUR HARD
WORK FOR YOUR COORDINATION. AND
AS ALWAYS, IN THIS REGION,
TREMENDOUS COLLABORATION, AND I
AM GLAD THAT THIS COMMITTEE HAS
CONVENED TO DISCUSS HOW TO BE
PREPARED FOR THESE EVENTS IN THE
FUTURE. WE ASKED FOR THE
GOVERNOR TO DECLARE AN EMERGENCY
A FEW WEEKS BEFORE THE HARDEST
PART OF THAT STORM HIT AND I SEE
SOME PEOPLE IN THIS AUDIENCE WHO
WILL KNOW WELL, WHAT THAT MEANS
. IT MEANS THAT SACRAMENTO ELK
GROVE IN SMUT HAD ACCESS TO
FEDERAL RESOURCES IMMEDIATELY,
AND SO I WANT TO THANK THE
GOVERNOR'S STAFF. I WANT TO
THANK THE OTHER ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S
AND SENATORS WHO ASKED FOR THAT
EMERGENCY STANDING AND FOR
SACRAMENTO COUNTY THAT HAD THE
FORESIGHT TO DO SO. I AM GLAD TO
BE HERE TODAY. I LOOK FORWARD TO
WORKING WITH ALL OF YOU AND THE
IMPORTANT WORK THAT THE JOINT
COMMITTEE WILL DO UNDER OUR
LEADERSHIP. I HAVE TO APOLOGIZE
FOR NOT BEING ABLE TO STAY THE
ENTIRE TIME BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY I
HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE SENATE
SIDE BEFORE THEY GIVE MY OFFICE
AWAY. AND YOU KNOW ALL THAT
STUFF, BUT I'M REALLY GRATEFUL
TO YOU. WE WILL BE WATCHING THE
HEARING PAYING ATTENTION TAKING
NOTES AND MY TEAM WILL BE HERE
TO ASSIST AS WELL. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. CHAIRMAN. THANK YOU,
SENATOR WITH THAT. I BELIEVE WE
ALSO HAVE ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S
HEART. YOU HAD A FEW COMMENTS.
THANK YOU. CHAIR RODRIGUEZ AND
VICE CHAIR ASHBY AND CHERRY
GARCIA IN THE STAFF FOR
ORGANIZING THIS HEARING TODAY, I
ALSO WANT TO THANK THE EXPERTS
THAT ARE SLATED TO TESTIFY,
INCLUDING OUR OWN SANTA BARBARA
COUNTY OAS DIRECTOR KELLY
HUBBARD. UNFORTUNATELY OUR
DISTRICT IS NOT NEW TO CLIMATE
DISASTERS FIVE YEARS AGO TO THE
DAY OUR COMMUNITIES SUFFERED
FROM THE TRAGIC MONTECITO DEBRIS
FLOW, RESULTING IN THE DEATHS OF
23 INDIVIDUALS. ITS MOST RECENT
STORM TESTED US ONCE AGAIN. FIVE
YEARS AND I APPRECIATE THE FAST
ACTION BY CALLOW ES AND THE
NATIONAL GUARD TO PARTNERSHIP
WITH OUR LOCAL GOVERNMENTS,
FEDERAL PARTNERS AND FIRST
RESPONDERS TO QUICKLY ACT IN
THAT EVENT, AND COLLECTIVELY,
WE'VE MADE A LOT OF PROGRESS TO
PROTECT OUR COMMUNITIES FROM THE
IMPACTS OF A CHANGING CLIMATE. I
ALSO APPRECIATE GOVERNOR NEWSOM
FOR HELPING TO SECURE A FEDERAL
MAJOR DISASTER DECLARATION FOR
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY THAT WAS
VERY TIMELY AND CRITICAL FOR
REIMBURSEMENT FOR LOCAL
GOVERNMENT ACTIONS. UM THESE
ADDITIONAL FEDERAL RESOURCES
WILL HELP US TO CLEAR OUT THE
CRITICALLY FULL DEBRIS BASINS
AND HELP FAMILIES RECOVER FROM
THE DEVASTATION. AS CLEANUP
CONTINUES CALLOW ES AND THE
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FISH
AND WILDLIFE WORKED VERY HARD
TOGETHER TO ENSURE THAT WE CAN
CONTINUE EMERGENCY OPERATIONS
WHILE PROTECTING CRITICAL
STEELHEAD HABITAT WHILE
OPERATIONS WERE PAUSED FOR A
SHORT TIME, THE QUICK WORK OF
ALL STAKEHOLDERS ENSURE WE COULD
CONTINUE CLEANUP AND RESPONSIBLE
WAY. SO I'M REALLY LOOKING
FORWARD TO HEARING FROM THE
TESTIMONY TODAY. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, SAM. REMEMBER I THINK
SIMPLY REMEMBER IS YOU HAD A
QUESTION COMMENT. THANK YOU, MR
CHAIR. I AND THANK YOU TO CHAIR
GARCIA AS WELL. AND CHAIR
BAUER-KAHAN, UM, AND OUR JOINT
VICE CHAIR SENATOR ASHBY FOR
PUTTING THIS HEARING TOGETHER.
IT'S CLEARLY VERY TIMELY. I
ESPECIALLY GIVEN THE RECENT
STORMS AND HOW DEVASTATING THE
DAMAGE WAS BOTH HERE IN
SACRAMENTO AND THROUGHOUT THE
STATE OF CALIFORNIA. I'M GLAD
THAT ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S RODRIGUEZ
WAS ABLE TO BRING FORTH OUR
RESPECTIVE COMMITTEES TO DISCUSS
WHAT THE LEGISLATURE CAN DO TO
PREPARE CALIFORNIA TO HELP US TO
PREPARE FOR FUTURE EMERGENCIES.
I KNOW THAT HIS EXPERTISE,
ESPECIALLY IN EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT, WILL SERVE AS WELL
AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THE
LEGISLATIVE PROCESS AS A MEMBER
OF THE UTILITIES AND ENERGY
COMMITTEE. UM WITH CHAIR GARCIA.
IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE KEEP IN
MIND HOW WE WHETHER IT IS OUR
INFRASTRUCTURE SO THAT OUR
CONSTITUENTS ARE ABLE TO KEEP
THEIR LIGHTS ON. STAY SAFE AND
TO OUR FIRST RESPONDERS. THANK
YOU FOR ALWAYS KEEPING US SAFE.
WE SINCERELY APPRECIATE THAT. I
LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM THE
PANELISTS AND I THANK YOU FOR
ALLOWING ME TO SEE A FEW WORDS.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. REMEMBER
SOMEWHERE METHOD. GITIC
QUESTION. COMMENT THANK YOU,
CHAIRMAN. UM IT'S VITAL THAT WE
DO THIS AND THAT WE BRING
EVERYBODY TOGETHER. THANK YOU,
SENATOR FOR BEING HERE AS WELL.
I THINK THE SENATOR BROUGHT UP A
GOOD POINT ON THE FACT THAT AS
WE GET HIT, WHETHER IT'S A
STORM, WHETHER IT'S WIND,
WHETHER IT'S EARTHQUAKE, WE HAVE
TO HAVE SOMETHING THAT WE'RE
ABLE TO TURN ON. TO KEEP THE
LIGHTS ON TO KEEP THINGS RUNNING
TO KEEP EMERGENCY SERVICE TRUCKS
AND REPAIR TRUCKS MOVING AS WELL
AS WE LOOK AT GOING TO ZERO
CARBON ON A LOT OF THINGS IN THE
FUTURE. I KNOW A LOT OF US HAVE
BILLS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. WE
NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE
STILL ABLE TO FUEL THESE THINGS,
AND WE'RE NOT WORRIED ABOUT
CHARGING AN EMERGENCY TRUCK. OR
A BATTERY RUNNING LOW. WE NEED
TO BE ABLE TO GO AND MOVE AND
OPERATE. UM MAYBE MAYBE IN A
MILITARY GUY I JUST SEE IT THAT
WAY. AH, UM BUT IT'S IMPORTANT.
WE LOOK AT THESE THINGS.
STRATEGICALLY WE LOOK AT ALL
ASPECTS THAT WE ENSURE THAT THE
TOOLS WERE GIVEN. OUR FIRST
RESPONDERS ARE NATIONAL GUARD
SERVICE OFF SERVERS. UM AND
SOLDIERS THAT ARE ON THE GROUND
THAT ARE LEAVING THEIR FAMILIES.
DURING THE WORST TIMES POSSIBLE
TO GO OUT AND PROTECT OURS HAVE
THE ACCESS TO THE RIGHT TOOLS.
AND THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT SO THEY
CAN RESPOND. AND GET US BACK ON
TRACK AND WHERE WE NEED TO BE.
UM I LOOK FORWARD TO THE PANEL
AND THE DISCUSSION. I KNOW A LOT
OF US HAVE TEAMS THAT ARE
WATCHING AND TAKING NOTES. BUT
IT'S TIME THAT THE FOURTH
LARGEST ECONOMY IN THE WORLD.
ACTUALLY STARTS ACTING LIKE IT
AND GETTING OUR INFRASTRUCTURE
FIXED, SO WE CAN BE AN EXAMPLE.
OF WHAT IT OUGHT TO LOOK LIKE
VERSUS BEING THE EXAMPLE OF THAT
WE'RE SETTING. I THINK OUR
VULNERABILITY OF LOOKING LIKE A
THIRD WORLD COUNTRY RIGHT NOW IS
THERE AND WE HAVE THE KNOW HOW
WE HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY. QUESTION
IS, IS WHAT WE HAVE THE ABILITY
AS MEMBERS OF THIS LEGISLATURE,
BOTH ASSEMBLY AND SENATE TO TAKE
THAT STEP FORWARD TO GET BEYOND
THE TALKING POINTS OF ZERO
CARBON AND OTHER THINGS THAT ARE
OUT THERE AND SAY HERE'S WHAT
ACTUALLY WORKS. AND HERE'S HOW
WE'RE GOING TO TAKE CARE OF THE
PEOPLE OF CALIFORNIA. SO THANK
YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE. I LOOK
FORWARD TO IT. THANK YOU ANY
OTHER MEMBERS LIKE ANY COMMENTS?
SEEN NONE WILL GO AHEAD AND
BEGIN. BUT BEFORE WE GO WITH THE
FIRST PANELS ON TO REMIND
EVERYONE PUBLIC COMMENT MAY BE
LIMITED AT THE END OF THE SYRIAN
DO THE NUMBER OF WITNESSES
TESTIFYING AND OTHER BUSINESS IN
THE ASSEMBLY. HOWEVER MEMBERS OF
THE PUBLIC ARE ENCOURAGED TO
VISIT MY COMMITTEE'S WEBSITE AND
SUBMIT WRITTEN TESTIMONY OR
CAUGHT THE PUBLIC COMMENT.
LANGUAGES 877 6928957 WITH THE
PASS CODE OF 1315437. SO WITH
THAT WE'LL BEGIN WITH OUR FIRST
PANELIST. OUR FIRST WITNESS WILL
BE DR DANIEL SWAIN, A CLIMATE
SCIENTIST AT THE UNIVERSITY OF
CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES
INSTITUTE OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND
SUSTAINABILITY. DR. SWAIN, YOU
MAY BEGIN. AND THANK YOU AGAIN
FOR THE INVITATION TO SPEAK
TODAY. I'M GOING TO QUICKLY
SHARE MY SCREENS. YOU CAN SEE
SOME OF THE CLIENTS AND GRAPHICS
THAT I HAVE PREPARED FOR THIS.
HOPEFULLY IT'S COMING UP FULL
SCREEN. MY APOLOGIES AT THE
CONNECTIONS A LITTLE CHOPPY THAT
AREA WIDE INTERNET OUTAGE TODAY
, AND I'M DOING THIS THROUGH MY
PHONE SO FINGERS CROSSED
ADDITION HOLDS, UM REALLY WHAT I
WANTED TO TALK ABOUT IN THE
CONTEXT OF THIS HEARING TODAY
WAS THE PHYSICAL CONTEXT OR THE
EVENTS THAT WE JUST OBSERVED
FROM DECEMBER INTO JANUARY 20.2
2023. AND THE LEVEL OF IMPACT
EXPERIENCE FROM THOSE EVENTS
RELATIVE TO THE COMMONS OF
EVENTS THAT ARE PLAUSIBLE,
PARTICULARLY IN A WARMING
CLIMATE BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT
CALIFORNIA COURSE IS NO STRANGER
TO EXTREME WINTERTIME
ATMOSPHERIC RIVER EVENTS
PERIODICALLY, BUT WE DO EXPECT
THAT CLIMATE CHANGE IS
SIGNIFICANTLY AFFECTING THE
ENVELOPE OF WHAT'S POSSIBLE. SO
ALL THIS DIVE INTO IT NOW. ONE
THING I WANTED TO EMPHASIZE IS
THAT THERE HAVE BEEN, I THINK
MORE HEARINGS ON DROUGHT
SCARCITY ORDERS YOUR CITY AND
DROUGHT. EXCUSE ME, UH, AND AS
WELL AS WILDFIRE IN RECENT YEARS
AND ON FLOOD, I THINK THAT'S FOR
UNDERSTANDABLE REASONS. WE'VE
SEEN A LOT MORE HYDRO CLIMATE
EXTREMES ON THE DRY SIDE OF
THINGS IN RECENT YEARS, BUT THE
LATEST CLIMATE SCIENCE REALLY
SUGGESTS THAT EVEN IF THEY WERE
NOT NECESSARILY SEEING LARGE
TRENDS IN THE OVERALL AVERAGE
PRECIPITATION, WE HAVEN'T SEEN
THAT YET. AND WE DON'T
NECESSARILY EXPECT TO SEE IT IN
THE FUTURE. WE SHOULD BE
EXPECTING QUITE LARGE INCREASES
IN THE LIKELIHOOD OF HYDRO
CLIMATE EXTREMES ON BOTH ENDS OF
THE SPECTRUM, SO BOTH VERY DRY
CONDITIONS IN A WARMING CLIMATE,
BUT ALSO VERY WET CONDITIONS.
AND THIS MAY COME AS A SURPRISE
TO SOME FOLKS, BUT THE INCREASE
IN THE VERY WET CONDITIONS MAY
WELL BE GREATER THAN THE
INCREASE IN THE VERY DRIVES
STILL GOING TO DEAL WITH BOTH,
BUT THE NET EFFECT IS THAT WE
SEE MORE VARIABILITY MORE WE
CALL HYDRO CLIMATE WHIPLASH.
EVEN IF WE DON'T SEE A PERIOD
THAT IS CHANGES IN OUR OVERALL
AVERAGE PRECIPITATION AS PART OF
THE WORLD. AND THERE IS
HISTORICAL CONTEXT FOR SEVERE
FLOODS AND MULTI WEEK SEQUENCES
OF STORMS LIKE WE'VE JUST SEEN
THE MOST INTENSE SUCH EVENT IN
RECORDED. HISTORY GOES BACK WAY
BACK TO ESSENTIALLY TOWARDS THE
BEGINNING OF CALIFORNIA'S
STATEHOOD AND IN THE MID 18
HUNDREDS WITH THE GREAT FLOOD OF
18 62 AND THE PALEO CLIMATE
RECORD THAT RECORD DERIVED FROM
INDIRECT INDICATORS LIKE RIVER
SEDIMENTS. UM OR LAKE SEDIMENTS
, FOR EXAMPLE, SUGGESTS THAT
VERY LARGE FLOOD EVENTS
COMPARABLE TO TWO OR EVEN LARGER
THAN WHAT OCCURRED IN 18 62
HAPPENED EVERYONE TO 200 YEARS,
SO THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WOULD
BE UNLIKELY ON THE SCALE OF
INDIVIDUAL HUMAN LIFETIME. BUT
IN THE LONG RUN, GEOLOGICALLY
SPEAKING, IT JUST HAPPENS OVER
AND OVER AGAIN AS PART OF THE
WORLD. IT SHOULDN'T BE TOO MUCH
OF A SURPRISE. A MODERN DAY.
REPEAT OF COURSE, WILL LOOK VERY
DIFFERENT THAN IT DID IN 18 62.
ON THE PLUS LINE. WE NOW HAVE
MODERN FLOOD CONTROL
INFRASTRUCTURE THAT DIDN'T EXIST
THEN. UH BUT ON THE NEGATIVE
SIDE, WE HAVE WE HAVE 40 MILLION
PEOPLE LIVING TODAY, GIVE OR
TAKE IN CALIFORNIA AT THE TIME
IN 18 62 THERE WERE CLOSER TO
400,000 AND MILLIONS OF THOSE
PRESENT DAY CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS
LIVE IN PLACES THAT WERE
SEVERELY INUNDATED IN EVENTS
LIKE WHAT OCCURRED IN 18 62 SOME
RESEARCH THAT WE DID A FEW YEARS
BACK. SUGGESTED THAT THERE WAS
ABOUT A 50 50 CHANCE, MAYBE EVEN
SLIGHTLY HIGHER THAN A 50 50
CHANCE. OF SEEING AN 18 62 LEVEL
FLOOD EVENT IN CALIFORNIA OVER
THE NEXT 40 YEARS OR SO. SO
WE'RE NOT EVEN TALKING ABOUT YOU
KNOW, THE END OF THE 21ST
CENTURY 2100, WHICH IS I KNOW
PRETTY SPECULATIVE TIME HORIZON
AND POLICY IN THE POLICY WORLD
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT OVER THE
NEXT 40 YEARS, SO NOT THAT MUCH
LONGER THAN THE COURSE OF YOUR
TYPICAL HOME MORTGAGE, FOR
EXAMPLE. AH! THE REASON FOR THIS
PRIMARILY IS THAT WE KNOW THAT A
WARMING CLIMATE INCREASES THE
CEILING ON HOW MUCH WATER VAPOR
THE ATMOSPHERE CAN POTENTIALLY
HOLD. AND SO BECAUSE OF THIS, WE
ANTICIPATE SIGNIFICANT INCREASES
IN THE STRENGTH AND THE AMOUNT
OF MOISTURE CONTAINED IN
ATMOSPHERIC RIVER STORMS. JUST
AS A REMINDER FOR FOLKS I WAS
HERE AT RIVERS ARE THESE LONG
BUT NARROW CORRIDORS OF VERY
CONCENTRATED ATMOSPHERIC WATER
VAPOR. MOVING QUICKLY IN THE
ATMOSPHERE AND THAT MOVING
QUICKLY PART IS IMPORTANT.
BECAUSE IF YOU JUST HAVE A VERY
MOIST ATMOSPHERE THAT'S JUST
KIND OF SITTING THERE. YOU DON'T
NECESSARILY HAVE THE POTENTIAL
FOR EXTREME PRECIPITATION. BUT
IF IT'S VERY MOIST, AND THE AIR
IS PUSHING THAT MOISTURE QUICKLY
UP AGAINST CALIFORNIA'S COASTAL
MOUNTAINS, THAT'S WHEN WE TEND
TO SEE OUR EXTREME PRECIPITATION
EVENTS. IN A WARMING CLIMATE
WITH MORE MOISTURE. THOSE SAME
WINDS ARE GOING TO GENERATE
LARGER AND MORE INTENSE
ATMOSPHERE, RECRUITERS. AND SO
THAT BRINGS ABOUT THE POTENTIAL
FOR HISTORICALLY UNPRECEDENTED
EVENTS THAT ARE POTENTIALLY ON
THE ORDER OF WHAT HAPPENED IN 18
62, OR EVEN GREATER. AND SO THIS
BRINGS IT. THIS BRINGS US TO THE
ARC STORM TWO POINT, OH SCENARIO
, WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY A
DISASTER AND CONTINGENCY
PLANNING SCENARIO, INSPIRED BY
THE SORTS OF USGS APPROACHES TO
BIG EARTHQUAKE SCENARIOS IN
CALIFORNIA, SO MANY FOLKS MAY BE
FAMILIAR WITH THE GREAT SHAKE
OUT OR THE HAYWIRE SCENARIO,
THINGS LIKE THAT THAT HAVE BEEN
DEVELOPED TO GREATLY ENHANCED
CALIFORNIA'S PREPAREDNESS FOR
MAJOR EARTHQUAKES. I THINK IT'S
DONE SO VERY SUCCESSFULLY OVER
THE YEARS WERE ENVISIONING ART
STORM TWO POINT OH, TO BE THE
ANALOGOUS SORT OF SCENARIO FOR
AN EXTREME FLOOD EVENTS IN THIS
IN THIS PART OF THE WORLD, AND
SO ALONG WITH THIS WE'VE BEEN
WORKING INTENSIVELY OVER THE
LAST COUPLE OF YEARS. OUR FIRST
MAJOR RESEARCH PUBLICATION, CAME
OUT THIS PAST SUMMER AND WAS
BASED ESSENTIALLY ON TWO
SCENARIOS. THE ARK HISTORICAL
AND THE ARC FUTURE SCENARIO. THE
ART HISTORICAL ONE BEING ONE
THAT IS PLAUSIBLE IN THE CLIMATE
OF THE 20TH CENTURY, SO THE
CLIMATE THAT WE WERE EXPERIENCE
SING AND THE ARC FUTURE STORY
SCENARIO BEING A STORM SCENARIO
THAT WOULD BE PLAUSIBLE, WITH
FURTHER WARMING LATER IT LATER
THIS CENTURY. AND BOTH OF THEM
WERE FOUR WEEK LONG SEQUENCES OF
SUCCESSIVE ATMOSPHERIC RIVER
STORMS, NOT UNLIKE WHAT WE JUST
EXPERIENCED OVER ABOUT A THREE
WEEK PERIOD FROM LATE DECEMBER
INTO MID JANUARY. AND WHAT WE
FOUND ON ESSENTIALLY IS THAT
DEEP, PLAUSIBLE AMOUNT OF WATER
THAT CAN FALL FROM THE SKY
DURING EVENTS THAT WE MAY WELL
EXPERIENCE IN THE COMING DECADES
IS PRETTY PHENOMENAL, EVEN
RELATIVE TO WHAT WE JUST
EXPERIENCED AND I THINK THAT'S
KEY PIECE OF CONTEXT HERE. THESE
ARE BOTH 3 TO 4 WEEK. LONG STORM
SEQUENCES ARE HISTORICAL YOU CAN
SEE ON THE LEFT ARC FUTURE ON
THE RIGHT. BUT THE KEY POINT
HERE I WANTED TO POINT OUT IS
THAT OVER THE COURSE OF 3 TO 4
WEEKS THERE ARE PLAUSIBLE STORM
SEQUENCES OF STORMS THAT COULD
OCCUR IN CALIFORNIA, ESPECIALLY
IN A WARMING CLIMATE THAT COULD
PRODUCE 70 INCHES OR MORE OF
LIQUID EQUIVALENT PRECIPITATION
IN SOME PARTS OF THE SIERRA
NEVADA. THAT IS A PHENOMENAL
AMOUNT OF WATER, AND OF COURSE,
SOME OF IT WOULD FALL OF SNOW,
BUT THE REST WOULD FALL AS RAIN
AND BECOME RUNOFF. THAT'S A LOT
OF WATER FOR THE STATE'S
RESERVOIRS AND FLOOD CONTROL
SYSTEMS TO BE HANDLING OVER THE
COURSE OF JUST A FEW WEEKS AND
JUST SO JUST TO PROVIDE SOME
HISTORICAL CONTEXT FOR WHAT WE
JUST EXPERIENCED. HOW DOES THE
LATE DECEMBER THROUGH MID
JANUARY EVENT COMPARE, AND THIS
IS VERY ROUGH AND APPROXIMATE SO
DON'T QUOTE ME ON THE SPECIFIC
NUMBERS YET, BUT IN GENERAL, IT
LOOKS LIKE WE GOT ABOUT 70 OR
80% OF THE WAY TO OUR LESSER ARC
HISTORICAL SCENARIO THAT WAS
PUBLISHED LAST SUMMER THIS
WINTER, AND THAT IS COMPARABLE
TO SEVERAL OTHER EVENTS WE'VE
SEEN IN THE LATTER HALF OF THE
20TH CENTURY. SO THINKING ABOUT
EVENTS IN 1995 1969. UM IT WAS
SIGNIFICANTLY MORE INTENSE THAN
WHAT WE SAW IN JANUARY. 2017
WHICH HAD NOTABLE IMPACTS IN
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA, BUT THE
EVENTS THIS TIME AROUND, WE'RE
MORE DISTRIBUTED FROM FAR
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA ALL THE WAY
DOWN INTO CENTRAL AND PARTS OF
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. SO THIS IS
MORE OF A STATEWIDE EVENT THAN
JANUARY 2017 ONES. THE MAIN
POINT I WANTED TO EMPHASIZE HERE
IS THAT ALTHOUGH WE GOT TO ABOUT
70, OR 80% OF THE STATEWIDE
CUMULATIVE PRECIPITATION WE
FORESAW IN OUR LESSER HISTORICAL
SCENARIO, UM WE'RE NOWHERE NEAR
THE KINDS OF EVENTS THAT WE
THINK ARE PLAUSIBLE IN A WARMING
CLIMATE. SO NOTE THAT WE'RE WE
DIDN'T EVEN MAKE IT TO THE
HALFWAY POINT IN TERMS OF WHAT
WE COULD SEE IN SOMETHING LIKE
THE ARC FUTURE SCENARIO, SO THE
IMPACTS WE SAW THIS EVENT AS
ADVERSE AND AS TRAGIC AS THEY
WERE, IN SOME CASES. ARE STILL
NOWHERE NEAR THE MAGNITUDE OF
THE KINDS OF UPPER END EXTREMES
THAT WE'RE CONCERNED ABOUT, AND
THAT WE'RE SORT OF EXPLORING IN
THE ARCTIC STORM. TWO POINT OH,
SCENARIOS, AND I'LL RUN THROUGH
THIS VERY BRIEFLY. BUT JUST TO
POINT OUT THAT IT'S NOT ONLY A
QUESTION OF PRECIPITATION
INCREASES DURING EXTREME EVENTS
IN A WARMING CLIMATE, BUT IT'S
ALSO A QUESTION OF THE WARMING
ITSELF. BECAUSE IN CALIFORNIA'S
MOUNTAINS, OF COURSE, AS YOU
MIGHT EXPECT, AS TEMPERATURES
WARM, GREATER FRACTION OF THE
PRECIPITATION FALLS AS LIQUID
RAIN RATHER THAN FROZEN SNOW,
AND SO INSTEAD OF ACCUMULATING
DURING STORM AND MELTING AT SOME
LATER POINT, HOPEFULLY DURING
THE SPRING OR EARLY SUMMER
MONTHS, WHICH IS CONVENIENT FOR
OUR WATER SUPPLY, IT MAY BE
FALLING MORE AS RAIN THAT RUNS
OFF IMMEDIATELY, EVEN AT HIGHER
ELEVATIONS. AND THIS IS
PARTICULARLY CONCERNING IN THE
CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN SIERRA
NEVADA. UH AND IT WITHIN THE SAN
JOAQUIN RIVER WATERSHED BECAUSE
IN THESE PLACES WE FORESEE THAT
EVEN THOUGH THE MOST INTENSE
PRECIPITATION EVENTS IN A
WARMING CLIMATE MIGHT BE UP TO
30 TO 40% WATER IN TERMS OF
OVERALL PRECIPITATION, THOSE
SAME EVENTS GENERATE AS MUCH AS
3 TO 400% MORE RUNOFF. IN THE
FROM THE SOUTHERN SIERRA NEVADA
WATERSHEDS BECAUSE OF THAT
DRAMATIC INCREASE IN THE AMOUNT
OF RAIN THAT'S FALLING INSTEAD
OF SNOW. SO THERE'S MORE INTENSE
PRECIPITATION, BUT ALSO MORE OF
THAT PRECIPITATION IS
IMMEDIATELY RUNNING OFF. AND SO
WE FOUND IN THE WORK PAST THIS
PAST SUMMER THAT CLIMATE CHANGE
HAS PROBABLY ALREADY DOUBLED,
JUST EMPHASIZE THAT PROBABLY
ALREADY DOUBLED THE LIKELIHOOD
OF AN EXTREMELY SEVERE STORM
SEQUENCE IN CALIFORNIA PRODUCED
CAPABLE OF PRODUCING MAJOR
FLOODING. UM, AGAIN, THIS IS
SOMEWHERE ON THE ORDER OF ABOUT
20% BIGGER THAN WHAT WE JUST SAW
. SO UH, THAT IS LARGER. BUT BUT
AT LEAST THE ARK HISTORICAL
SCENARIO IS SOMEWHAT COMPARABLE.
AND WE ALSO FOUND THE SORT OF
UPDATED THE STATISTIC FROM 2018
THAT THE CUMULATIVE RISK OF
SEEING AN ANARCHIST OR ICAL
LEVEL EVENT WHICH AGAIN WOULD BE
ABOUT 20 TO 30% LARGER THAN WHAT
WE JUST SAW IS NOW GREATER THAN
ABOUT 65% SO ESSENTIALLY,
THERE'S ABOUT A TWO AND THREE
CHANCE OF SEEING AN EVENT THAT
IS ABOUT 20 OR 30, LARGER THAN
WHAT WE JUST EXPERIENCED. OVER
THE NEXT 40 YEARS OR SO. AND SO
I DON'T THINK IT REALLY IT'S
PROBABLY OBVIOUS TO A LOT OF
FOLKS IN THIS AUDIENCE Y THIS
WOULD BE A PROBLEM WHETHER IF IT
WERE TO RECUR BECAUSE THERE
ISN'T REALLY A MODERN PRECEDENT
FOR AN 18 63 LIKE GREAT FLOOD.
AS BAD AS RECENT EVENTS HAVE
BEEN, THERE'S STILL NOWHERE NEAR
THAT LEVEL OF METEOROLOGICALLY
SPEAKING AND IN TERMS OF THE
IMPACTS WE'D SEE. EVEN IN A
MODERN CALIFORNIA WITH
RESERVOIRS AND FLOOD PROTECTION
INFRASTRUCTURE, SO THERE IS A
REAL QUESTION ABOUT HOW
CALIFORNIA'S WATER AND FLOOD
PROTECTION INFRASTRUCTURE WOULD
FARE IN THE 21ST CENTURY WORLD.
BUT WE NOT ONLY HAVE MORE
INTENSE ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS BUT
ALSO WARMER ONES THAT ARE
PRODUCING A LOT MORE RUN OFF HER
INCREMENT OF PRECIPITATION,
BECAUSE AGAIN A LOT MORE OF THAT
PRECIPITATION. ESPECIALLY IN THE
COMING DECADES IS LIKELY TO FALL
AS RAIN RATHER THAN SNOW. UM, SO
THAT'S SORT OF WHAT WE'RE
LOOKING AT IN PHASES TWO AND
THREE ARE STORM TWO POINT. OH
WE'RE BUT WE'RE STILL WE'RE
STILL LOOKING FOR SOME SUPPORT
THERE, BUT I THINK WE'LL GET
THAT DONE. STAY TUNED FOR THE
RESULTS OF WHAT THIS IS ACTUALLY
GOING TO LOOK LIKE ON THE
GROUND, BUT IN THE ORIGINAL
ITERATION OF OUR STORM, THE ONE
POINT OH VERSION BACK FROM 2010
. IT WAS FOUND THAT AN EVENT
MODERN RECURRENCE OF AN 18 62
LEVEL FLOOD. COULD IN $2022 END
UP BEING CLOSE TO A TRILLION
TRILLION, WITH A T DOLLAR
DISASTER, SO JUST A MASSIVE
ECONOMIC IMPACT FROM THE KINDS
OF EVENTS THAT WE'RE TALKING
ABOUT WHICH AGAIN ARE
SIGNIFICANTLY MORE INTENSE THAN
WHAT WE JUST EXPERIENCED. IT
WOULD INVOLVE A TEMPORARY OR
EVEN MEDIUM TERM DISPLACEMENT OF
MILLIONS OF PEOPLE. MAJOR AND
LONG TERM DESTRUCTION OF
TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE
AND AGAIN, AFFECTING ESSENTIALLY
ALL OF CALIFORNIA'S ECONOMIC
SECTOR SIMULTANEOUSLY BECAUSE IT
WOULDN'T JUST BE CONFINED TO ONE
MAJOR CITY LIKE A BIG EARTHQUAKE
PROBABLY WOULD, BUT IT WOULD
AFFECT LOS ANGELES SAN FRANCISCO
SACRAMENTO AGRICULTURE, SILICON
VALLEY TOURISM, THE MOVIE
INDUSTRY ALL AT ONCE. AND SO I
WANT TO CLOSE HERE, JUST WITH
SOME TO PIVOT A LITTLE BIT AWAY
FROM THE DOOM AND GLOOM HERE
ABOUT THE KINDS OF THINGS THAT
WE CAN DO ABOUT IT BECAUSE WE
KNOW THE PHYSICAL REALITY IS
THAT WE'RE SEEING AN INCREASE IN
BOTH PRECIPITATION INTENSITY,
BUT ALSO IN OVERALL HEREDITY, SO
WE CAN'T JUST BE FOCUSING ON ONE
OR THE OTHER WITH ALONG WITH
LOTS OF SNOW PACK AND MORE
INTENSE RUNOFF. BUT CAN WE
MITIGATE THESE RISKS? CAN WE CO
MANAGE THE RISKS OF DROUGHT AND
FLOOD SIMULTANEOUSLY? BECAUSE IF
WE ONLY FOCUS ON ONE POTENTIALLY
GOING TO BE NOW ADAPTING TO THE
OTHER ONE. ONE THING IS BECOMING
CLEAR. IS THAT THE HISTORICAL
PARADIGMS WE'VE USED AND
MANAGEMENT PRACTICES THAT WE'VE
BEEN USING AREN'T GOING TO CUT
IT IN THE 21ST CENTURY. UM SO I
THINK THAT IN CLOSING, I WANTED
TO RE EMPHASIZE THAT A MODERN
CALIFORNIA MEGA FLOOD WHICH
WOULD BE SIGNIFICANTLY LARGER
THAN WHAT WE JUST EXPERIENCED
WOULD BE AN UNPRECEDENTED
STATEWIDE DISASTER SUBSTANTIALLY
DIFFERENT IN CHARACTER IN MANY
WAYS TO MAJOR EARTHQUAKE OR
SEVERE WILDFIRE. AH LARGER,
POTENTIALLY EVEN MUCH LARGER
STORM SEQUENCES AND FLOODS THAT
WERE THEN WERE OBSERVED IN THE
20TH CENTURY ARE HIGHLY
PLAUSIBLE IN A WARMING
CALIFORNIA PARTLY BECAUSE WE
QUOTE UNQUOTE GOT LUCKY IN THE
20TH CENTURY, BUT ALSO BECAUSE
THE CEILING IS RISING WITH A
WARMING CLIMATE. WE FOUND THAT
CLIMATE CHANGE HAS ALREADY
DOUBLED THE ODDS OF AN EXTREMELY
SEVERE STORM SEQUENCE. UH ABOUT
20 OR 30% MORE SEVERE THAN WHAT
WE JUST EXPERIENCED IN
CALIFORNIA AND IN OUR STORM TWO
POINT OH, WE ARE EXPLORING THE
BROADER IMPLICATIONS. UH AND
ECONOMIC SORTS AND SOCIETAL
IMPACTS THAT WOULD RESULT FROM
THIS AND HOW TO MITIGATE THEM.
AND MUCH CAN BE DONE TO MITIGATE
THESE RISKS. BOTH HARD
INFRASTRUCTURE THERE THE KINDS
OF THINGS WE THINK ABOUT LEVEES
AND DAMS BUT ALSO SOFT
INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT.
BEING FLEXIBLE WITH LIGHTING THE
RIVERS ROME UM FLOODPLAIN
RESTORATION LEVY SETBACKS, UM,
COUPLING GROUNDWATER RECHARGE TO
FLOOD WATER, THINGS LIKE THAT.
UM AND THAT ALSO EXTENDS TO
IMPROVE PLANNING AND AWARENESS
MUCH AS WE'RE DISCUSSING. I
THINK IN THE HEARING TODAY, UM,
SO WITH THAT I WILL CLOSE AND I
THINK IT PROBABLY ALREADY GONE A
LITTLE BIT OVER TIME. BUT THANK
YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, DOCTOR
. WE'RE NEXT MOVE ON TO OUR NEXT
WITNESSES. DR MARTY RALPH, A
RESEARCHER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF
SAN DIEGO SCRIPTS, INSTITUTION
OF OCEANOGRAPHY, DOCTOR, RALPHIE
MAY BEGIN. AFTERNOON. I GUESS
MORNING. LET ME SHARE SCREEN
HERE. YOU DON'T LAST SET. HERE
WE GO. CAN YOU SEE IT? OKAY.
YES, THAT'S FINE. GREAT WELL,
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. IT'S A REAL
HONOR TO BE HERE TODAY WITH THE
INCREDIBLE PANEL OF MULTIPLE
COMMITTEES TO ADDRESS THE BIG
CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN
THE FUTURE FOR CALIFORNIA TO
DEAL WITH THEM. FOLLOWING DR
SWAIN'S WONDERFUL PRESENTATION,
WANT TO VALIDATE A CUE POINT,
GANGEL MADE ABOUT ARC STORM AS
THE CO LEAD OF OUR STORM. ONE
POINT OH, ABOUT A DECADE AGO, WE
DID, IN FACT CONCLUDE ABOUT $700
BILLION OF IMPACTS WAS PLAUSIBLE
AND TO SEE WHAT WE DID NOT
REALLY ADDRESS THE CLIMATE
CHANGE RISK ASPECTS OF ARC STORM
TWO POINT OH, HAS DONE A GOOD
JOB AND MOVING THAT FORWARD.
PART OF WHAT I'M GONNA TALK
ABOUT TODAY WAS IN FACT, SPAWNED
BY ARC STORM. ONE POINT OF
THINKING WHICH REALLY, UH,
TRIGGERED ME PERSONALLY TO
PURSUE HEAVILY SOLUTIONS PARTLY
TO DEAL WITH THESE CHALLENGES
LARGELY AROUND THE IDEA OF
BETTER PREDICTIONS, SO LET ME GO
AHEAD. FIRST OF ALL, WE HAVE
DEFINITION FORMALLY AND
METEOROLOGY OF WHAT AN
ATMOSPHERIC RIVER IS. HERE'S A
NICE SCHEMATIC FROM SCIENTIFIC
AMERICAN ARTICLE ABOUT 10 YEARS
AGO. ONE OF THE STARTLING FACTS
ABOUT A R S IS AN AVERAGE JR. IF
YOU SLICE ACROSS IT AND
CALCULATE THE FLOW OF WATER
VAPOR. IT'S ABOUT THE EQUIVALENT
OF 27, MISSISSIPPI'S. THAT'S AN
AVERAGE JR. THE BIG ONES CAN BE
FAR MORE POTENT. WE SEE THEM NOW
IN MODERN SATELLITE DATA THAT
FIRST BECAME AVAILABLE AROUND
1998 AND 2000, YOU CAN SEE THE
POINTING. THEY'RE THEY'RE
APPOINTING TO IMAGINE THE WATER
FLOWING ALONG THAT FROM
SOUTHWEST TO NORTHEAST. THE
BOTTOM PART OF THIS, THE PURPLES
IS THE TROPICS AND WE THINK OF
IT DIFFERENTLY. BUT ALSO YOU CAN
SEE THE PLACE WHERE THIS HIT IN
OREGON, WASHINGTON AT 25 INCHES
OF RAIN. IN THREE DAYS. IT
WOULDN'T TAKE BUT A COUPLE OF
THESE TO HAPPEN IN A THREE OR
FOUR WEEK PERIOD TO ACTUALLY
CREATE THE ARCTIC STORM. TWO
POINT OH SCENARIO. NOT ONLY
THOUGH, HOWEVER, DO THESE
PRODUCE HAZARD IT'S LIKE WE'VE
BEEN DEALING WITH, BUT ALSO
INCREDIBLY BENEFICIAL WATER FOR
AN AREA PRONE TO BIG EXTREMES IN
WET AND DRY. LET ME SHOW AN
EXAMPLE OF THAT. THAT JUST
HAPPENED ALMOST A TEXTBOOK
EXAMPLE FROM FROM NEW YEAR'S.
THIS IS A PARAMETER CALLED WATER
VAPOR, INTEGRATED WATER VAPOR,
SO IT'S ALL THE WATER VAPOR IN
THE ATMOSPHERE FROM THE SURFACE
TO SPACE, AND IT LAYS OUT THAT
NICE LINE THAT HELPS BRAIN LI.
IT'S SORT OF EVOKES THE RIVER
NATURE OF THESE THINGS, AND YOU
CAN SEE WHERE IT'S HITTING THE
COAST. AND THEN WHEN WE HAD THE
WIND TO THE CALCULATION, WE GET
THE WATER VAPOR TRANSPORT, JUST
AS DANIEL MENTIONED IS SO
IMPORTANT WATER PEOPLE JUST
SITTING THERE DOESN'T HAVE THE
SAME IMPACT AS WATER VAPOR
MOVES. NGUYEN PRIMARILY INTO THE
MOUNTAINS AND BEING FORCED
UPWARD. AND WHAT HAPPENED WHEN
THAT HIT THAT AREA OF THE COAST,
YOU CAN SEE THE BULLSEYE
ESSENTIALLY OF THE HEAVIEST
PRECIPITATION IN 24 HOURS IS
RIGHT WHERE THE ER HIT. THIS IS
THE FUNDAMENTAL MESSAGE OF A OUR
SCIENCE AND IMPACT STUDIES IN
THE WEST COAST AREAS WHERE THEY
HIT HOW LONG THEY STALL FOR HOW
STRONG THEY ARE IS REALLY WHAT
DETERMINES THE IMPACTS. AND I
JUST WANT TO SHOW SCHEMATICALLY
AN EXAMPLE OF THAT. THIS IS THIS
IS ONE OF OUR STORMS IN THE ER
ONSLAUGHT OF HOLIDAY SEASON THIS
YEAR AND EARLY 2023 TO VISIBLE
AND IR SATELLITE IMAGE AND YOU
SEE THE VERY CLASSIC COMIC CLOUD
AND THAT LOW PRESSURE CENTER AT
THE UPPER PART WHERE EVERYTHING
IS CURLED AROUND HAS BEEN THE
ATTENTION OF METEOROLOGY FOR A
CENTURY, BUT WHAT WE'VE DONE
OVER THE LAST DECADE, THANKS IN
PART TO INSPIRATION FROM ART
STORM AND FROM THE SCIENCE
ITSELF. AS WE STARTED FOCUSING
ON THE PART OF THE STORM THAT IS
NOW DEFINED AS THE ATMOSPHERIC
RIVER. IT'S WHERE THE IT'S SORT
OF THE BUSINESS END OF THE STORM
WHEN IT COMES TO IMPACTS ON THE
WEST COAST, IN PARTICULAR IN
CALIFORNIA IS VERY IMPORTANT IN
MANY WAYS, BUT YOU CAN GET THE
LOWER RIGHT AND PREDICTION AND
NOT GET THE A R RIGHT. AND THAT
HAS BEEN A REVOLUTION, OUR
THINKING AND OUR METHOD. THAT
OUR CENTER CW THREE SCRIPTS
WE'VE FOCUSED ON NOW, WITH MANY
PARTNERS THAT DWR AND NOAH AND
ELSEWHERE IN THE COUNTRY NOW,
THE WAY THIS THING MOVES IT SORT
OF MOVES INLAND, MOVES SOUTH AND
ALSO CHANGES INTENSITY AS IT'S
MOVING, AND HERE'S JUST A
SCHEMATIC VIEW OF WHAT IT WOULD
LOOK LIKE MAYBE 24 HOURS LATER.
NOW IMAGINE TRYING TO PREDICT
THAT AND TRACK THAT WHERE THE
IMPACT IS GOING TO BE HIGHEST.
WE'VE DEVELOPED A SCALE FOR
THAT. ALL THE ER SCALE AND WE
RANK THE A. R S 1234 AND FIVE
AND HERE'S A TOOL FROM OUR
CENTER THAT'S USED ALSO BY DWR
AND BY MANY FOLKS IN IN
APPLICATIONS TO REALLY TAKE ALL
THAT COMPLICATED BEHAVIOR AND
BOIL IT DOWN TO A SINGLE COLOR
DOT ON THE COAST. AND THAT HERE
YOU SEE THE ORANGE DOT INDICATES
WHERE THE MAXIMUM INTENSITY OF
THE A R IS GOING TO BE COMBINED
WITH THE DURATION OF THE ER.
IT'S NOT JUST HOW STRONG THEY
ARE IS AT THE MOMENT, BUT IT'S
HOW LONG IT LASTS OVER YOUR
LOCATION. IF IN YOUR STALLS
THAT'S HOW WE GET FLOODED. LET
ME SUMMARIZE THIS ASPECT OF THE
SCALE AND ITS IMPACTS HERE IN A
SERIES OF THREE STUDIES THAT
HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED IN THE LAST
FEW YEARS. HERE'S OUR SCALE AND
YOU SEE THE HORIZONTAL AXIS IS
THE ER DURATION. THE VERTICAL
AXIS IS THE MAXIMUM INTENSITIES.
IT'S GOING OVERHEAD. IT TURNS
OUT WHEN WE COMPARE IT WITH
FLOOD DAMAGES OVER 40 YEARS OF
FEMA DATA, THE VAST MAJORITY OF
THE FLOOD DAMAGES ARE FROM A OUR
STORMS. BUT WRECK THE DAMAGES
ACCORDING TO OUR SCALE OF
RANKING WE SEE IN NEARLY LOG
ARRHYTHMIC INCREASE IN THE
DAMAGES. IN FACT, WE SEE, UM THE
MINIMAL OURS ONES AND TWOS TEND
TO BE PRETTY BENEFICIAL BECAUSE
WATER SUPPLY IS SO IMPORTANT AND
THEY'RE VERY GOOD PRODUCERS OF
WATER, BUT THE BIG ONES ARE MORE
HAZARDOUS. THERE'S A CAVEAT
HERE, THOUGH, AND THAT IS IF YOU
GET A AN A R ONE OR TWO THAT
COMES RIGHT ON THE HEELS OF AN A
R FOUR OR FIVE. THAT ONE'S GONNA
HAVE A LOT MORE IMPACT THAT THEY
ARE ONE OR TWO THAN IT WOULD IF
IT HIT A DRY LANDSCAPE. AND IF
THE ER FOUR OR FIVE HITS THE DRY
LANDSCAPE OF THE BEGINNING OF
THE WET SEASON OR HITS AN AREA
THAT DOESN'T HAVE MUCH BUILT
INFRASTRUCTURE, YOU'RE NOT GONNA
GET NEARLY THE IMPACT THERE, SO
WE REALLY NEED TO PAY ATTENTION
TO THE ANTECEDENT CONDITIONS ON
THE GROUND AND THE DETAILS OF
WHERE THIS HITS AND THAT IS A
REALLY CORE ROLE FOR THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE, IN MY
HUMBLE OPINION, AND THAT THEY
CAN TAKE THEIR EXPERTISE AND
POINT FORECASTING AND TAKE THIS
SITUATIONAL AWARENESS TOOL OF
OUR RANKING AND TRANSLATE THAT
INTO SPECIFIC, DETAILED
FORECAST. FOR YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
OR YOUR CONSTITUENTS. AND WE
HAVE JUST COMPLETED A STUDY.
THIS IS FROM BARTLETT AND
CORDILLERA THAT ILLUSTRATES THIS
THROUGH SCHEMATIC HERE. YOU CAN
SEE THE RISING IMPACTS WHEN YOU
HAVE A VERY RIPE SO TO SPEAK,
AND TO SEE ENVIRONMENT WHICH, BY
THE WAY IS WHAT HAPPENED IN THIS
CASE. THAT'S THE SCENARIO WHEN
WE GET A FAMILY OF A R IS COMING
BACK TO BACK OR AN ONSLAUGHT OF
THESE, LIKE WE HAD THE NINE IN A
ROW HIT. THAT REALLY ADDS UP TO
BIG IMPACTS. SO WHAT DID THE
EVENTS LOOK LIKE THIS LAST FEW
WEEKS? WELL HERE'S THE MAP FROM
OUR CENTER, UH, SUPPORTING THE
DWR INTEREST IN TRACKING THESE
THINGS. YOU CAN SEE THE COLOR AS
THE INTENSITY AND THE ORANGES
ARE MODERATE. THE REDS ARE, UH
STRONG AND THE BLACK ONE SUPER
RARE, EXCEPTIONAL. A R. AND JUST
FOR REFERENCE JUST FOR
COMPARISON. HERE'S THE TOTALITY
OF A RS FOR THREE MONTHS. IN THE
PREVIOUS WINTER. WE HAD BARELY
ONE AND IT WAS A WEEK ONE AND
LOOK AT THE RED THERE AND THE
COLOR FIELD. THAT'S THE DRYNESS.
THE RIGHT HAND DOESN'T HAVE THE
PRECINCT ON IT. BUT THE LEFT HAS
THE DRYNESS OF IT. AND YOU CAN
SEE THE ABSENCE OF A OURS IS
REALLY HOW WE DESCEND INTO
DROUGHT AND WHEN WE GET TO MANY,
LIKE ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE, BUT
WE JUST ADD, WE END UP IN FLOOD.
SO WHAT CAN WE END? A BEAUTIFUL
WEBSITE? THE CALIFORNIA WATER
WATCH. I WATCH THAT EVERY DAY.
VERY CONCISELY ILLUSTRATES THE
OVERALL STATUS OF WATER SUPPLY
ACROSS THE STATE RELATIVE TO
NORMAL FOR THE DATE AND YOU CAN
SEE AFTER THIS ONSLAUGHT.
THANKFULLY THE WATER STORAGE WAS
UP TO 98% OF NORMAL FOR THE DATE
AND THE SNOWPACK IS AN
EXCEPTIONALLY GOOD CONDITION.
THERE'S STILL A VERY MANY
DIMENSIONS OF DROUGHT THAT ARE
MUCH LONGER LASTING AND GOING TO
TAKE YEARS TO RESOLVE, BUT AT
LEAST WE GOT A GOOD BENEFICIAL
SIDE OF ALL THIS, DESPITE ALL
THE TERRIBLE THINGS THAT CAME
WITH IT. LET ME SHOW A LITTLE
BIT ABOUT WHAT WE'RE DOING TO
TRY TO IMPROVE THE PREDICTIONS,
AND THERE'S A LOT MORE GOING ON
THAN I CAN SHARE IN JUST A
COUPLE OF SLIDES HERE, BUT
PLEASE TAKE A LOOK AT OUR
WEBSITE IF YOU WANT AND I'LL
SHOW YOU THAT AGAIN. BUT HERE'S
A PREMIER ASPECT OF WHAT WE'VE
DEVELOPED AT OUR CENTER WITH
MANY COLLEAGUES AND PARTNERS
ACROSS FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND
STATE IS ATMOSPHERIC RIVER
RECONNAISSANCE. WE TAKE THE
HURRICANE HUNTER AIRCRAFT. THE
NATION HAS IN ITS ARSENAL FOR
HURRICANES AND NOW USE THEM IN
AN OPERATIONAL WAY, GUIDED BY
OUR CENTER IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TO
ACTUALLY MEASURE THESE STORMS
OFFSHORE AS THEY'RE FORMING UP
SO THAT WE CAN BETTER PREDICT
THEM AND ON THE RIGHT YOU SEE
THE AIRCRAFT WERE USING FROM THE
AIR FORCE WHETHER RECONNAISSANCE
SQUADRONS HE ONE THIRTIES AND
THE KNOWLEDGE THE FOUR JET. AND
ON THE LEFT. YOU SEE A PICTURE
OF AN A R IN THE COLOR FEEL
THERE, AND THE DOTTED LINES ARE
WHERE WE ACTUALLY FLEW THE TWO
AIRCRAFT INTO THIS STORM TO
MEASURE IT MORE PRECISELY. THE
THING IS, WE'VE DISCOVERED
SCIENTIFICALLY THAT WHEN THE
MODELS OF WHETHER MODELS STARTS
ITS NEW FORECAST WITH THE ARE
NOT REPRESENTED ACCURATELY,
THERE'S BIG AIRS IN THE
PREDICTION OF THE ER. IT'S
PRETTY INTUITIVE. BUT WE GO OUT
NOW, AND WE PINNED DOWN THE
DETAILS OF THAT A ARE IN WAYS
THAT THAT DATA FLOWS RIGHT INTO
THE OPERATIONAL MODELS. AND FOR
THE LAST FEW WEEKS, THESE DATA
WERE HELPING MAKE THESE
FORECASTS BETTER THAN THEY WOULD
HAVE OTHERWISE BEEN. AND HERE'S
AN EXAMPLE THAT SHOWS THE SCOPE
OF WHAT WE DID NEW RECORD OF 13
CONSECUTIVE DAYS FLYING THESE
MISSIONS AND YOU CAN SEE THE
DOTS THE BLACK DOTS THERE,
REPRESENTING ALL THE DIFFERENT
DROP SOUNDS. WE DROP OUT OF THE
PLANE, A LITTLE SENSOR PACKAGE
ABOUT THE SIZE OF A COKE CAN
LITTLE PARACHUTE MEASURES,
TEMPERATURE PRESSURE, WIND AND
MOISTURE RADIOS IT BACK TO THE
AIRCRAFT, WHICH THEN SATELLITE
DATA BACK TO THE BIG DATA HUB.
FOR WHETHER THAT ALL THE GLOBAL
MODELS DRAW FROM. SO THESE WERE
HELPING OVER THE COURSE OF THIS
LAST ONSLAUGHT OF A RS. ANOTHER
THING WE'VE DONE AT OUR CENTER
IS TO BUILD AND LOTS OF
PARTNERSHIP WITH THAT BUILDING
WHETHER FOLK WEATHER PREDICTION
FOCUS. AN ATMOSPHERIC RIVER
FOCUSED WEATHER PREDICTION MODEL
. WE CALL IT WEST WHARF AND THE
DOWNWARD SLOPE OF THOSE BOLD
LINES OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS
ILLUSTRATES A MAJOR IMPROVEMENT
IN THE OUR PREDICTION SKILL IN
THIS MODEL. AND THIS SUCCEEDS
THE SKILL OF OTHER MODELS
BECAUSE WE'VE TAILORED
SPECIFICALLY TO A RS, WHERE
OTHER MODELS ARE TAILORED OTHER
THINGS OR TRYING TO GET THE
GLOBAL WEATHER RIGHT. AND THIS
REPRESENTED AN IMPROVEMENT IN
THE LEAD TIME OF SEEING THESE
ARE S COMING, AND THIS IS AN
EXAMPLE OF THE TYPE OF RESEARCH
THAT IS ONGOING. RIGHT NOW
THROUGH THE CALIFORNIA
DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES A
OUR PROGRAM TO TRY TO IMPROVE
KEY ELEMENTS OF FORECASTS OF
THESE A R S. NOW I BELIEVE THERE
ARE MANY OTHER ASPECTS OF THE
CZARS FOR WHICH OS RELATED
CONCERNS, UH, REQUIRE SPECIAL
ATTENTION, ESPECIALLY DOWN TO
THE SPECIFIC WATERSHED SCALE AND
IMPACTS ON COMMUNITIES. WHERE
YOU HAVE TO PUT YOUR EMERGENCY
RESPONDERS AT A TIME, HOPEFULLY
GET THEM IN PLACE TO HELP PEOPLE
BE PREPARED. IN ADDITION THROUGH
THE ER SCALE OF PUBLIC AWARENESS
AND SITUATIONAL AWARENESS OF
YOUR COMMUNITIES IS ENHANCED BY
THE FACT THAT THIS SCALE IS
CATCHING CATCHING CATCHING ON,
AND I HEAR REPEATEDLY FOR MANY
PEOPLE OUTSIDE SCIENCE. THEY
DON'T KNOW WHO I AM THE SAME MAN
THAT AIR SCALES WORKING AND I'M
NOT JUST TRYING TO SAY THAT, YOU
KNOW, UH, SELF CONGRATULATE, BUT
RATHER TO JUST REALLY POINT OUT
THIS IS PENETRATING. I'VE ALWAYS
HOPED AND DEVELOPING THE SCALE
THAT WOULD ACTUALLY BE USEFUL IN
THE WORLD OF EMERGENCY SERVICES
AS A SITUATIONAL AWARENESS TOOL.
AND FINALLY, I JUST WANT TO
POINT TO AN ARTICLE MORE
RECENTLY, JUSTIN LAST SEPTEMBER
AND SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, THE
OTHERS ASKED ME TO PRODUCE AND
IT GIVES THEM COMMON LANGUAGE IN
A VERY SHORT AND CONCISE WAY.
THE STORY OF THE CREATION OF THE
SCALE OF THE RECON EFFORT AND OF
THE FORECAST IN FOREIGN
RESERVOIR OPERATIONS PROGRAM
THAT IN THAT IT HELPS MAKE
SUCCESSFUL SO WITH THAT, I'LL
CLOSE HERE AND JUST ENCOURAGE
OFFERS SOME ENCOURAGEMENT.
THERE'S A THERE ARE A LOT OF
PEOPLE WHO ARE REALLY MOTIVATED
TO WORK TO IMPROVE THE FORECAST
OF THESE VERY DANGEROUS AND
IMPORTANT STORMS, AND WE'RE HERE
TO HELP AS MUCH AS WE POSSIBLY
CAN. AND I LOOK FORWARD TO ANY
CONVERSATIONS OR FOLLOW UP THAT
MAY BE OF INTEREST. WELL THANK
YOU VERY MUCH. DOCTOR APPRECIATE
YOUR PRESENTATION NOW MOVE ON TO
OUR LAST WITNESS FOR THIS PANEL,
DR MICHAEL ANDERSON, THE
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF WATER
RESOURCES AND WHO HAS THE STATE
CRIMINOLOGIST, MR ANDERSON MAY
BEGIN. THANK YOU. THANK YOU ALL
FOR THE OPPORTUNITY. TO SPEAK
AND PRESENT JUST A LITTLE BIT
ABOUT MYSELF AND MY ROLE. I HAVE
WORKED WITH THE DEPARTMENT NOW
FOR 18 YEARS HAVE BEEN STATE
CLIMATOLOGIST FOR 16 OF THOSE
YEARS. UM, MY FIRST SIX MONTHS
ON THE JOB AS A RIVER FORECASTER
, I WOULD SAY FORECASTER FOR THE
2006 FT. UM SO I'VE HAD A LONG
HISTORY IN EMERGENCY RESPONSE
AND IN THE JOB I CURRENTLY
SITTING IN ONE OF THE IT IS A
COLLABORATIVE POSITION BETWEEN
THE NATIONALIST DEMOGRAPHIC AND
ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION'S
CLIMATE PROGRAM OFFICE. AND THE
STATE OF CALIFORNIA. SIMILAR.
PERSON SUCH AS MYSELF IDEALLY
WOULD BE IN EACH STATE. WE HAVE
46 TO 48 STATES THAT HAVE SUCH A
POSITION, OFTEN LOCATED IN AN
ACADEMIC INSTITUTION. I'M ONE OF
ABOUT HALF A DOZEN WHO ARE
LOCATED WITHIN A RESOURCES
AGENCY. AND ONLY ONE OF TWO THAT
ARE ASSOCIATED WITH EMERGENCY
SERVICES. MY COLLEAGUE IN SOUTH
CAROLINA AH, SO. IN THIS ROLE.
IT'S FACILITATING INFORMATION
EXCHANGE AND GIVEN THE
BACKGROUND. IN. ATMOSPHERIC
SCIENCE AND CIVIL ENGINEERING. I
HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK
WITH BOTH DR SWAIN AND DR RALPH
AND BRINGING THE SCIENCE INTO
PROGRAMMATIC ACTIVITY IN A WAY
THAT HOPEFULLY HELPS THE STATE
OF CALIFORNIA MOVE FORWARD AND
BE BETTER PREPARED. AH ONE OF
THE THINGS THAT DR OFF MENTIONED
WERE TOOLS DEVELOPED IN
PARTNERSHIP OVER THE PAST DECADE
WITH THE CENTER FOR WESTERN
WESTERN WATERS EXTREMES THAT
HELP US SITUATIONAL AWARENESS
UNDERSTANDING. WHAT'S COMING
NEXT AND GETTING A SENSE FOR
BENEFIT OR HAZARD WITH THE
STORMS, AND INDEED UH, SO TALK
ABOUT IN A LITTLE BIT. THOSE
TOOLS WERE USED IN PART OF MY
ROLE DURING THIS MOST RECENT
EMERGENCY. THERE ARE OTHER, MORE
DETAILED PRODUCTS THAT THE
CENTER PROVIDES THAT ARE GEARED
MORE FOR LOCAL WATER MANAGERS.
THAT REALLY HELPED THEM
UNDERSTAND WHAT'S GOING ON IN
THE WATERSHED SUPPORTING WORK,
LIKE FORECASTING FIRM BREASTS OF
OUR OPERATIONS AND REALLY
WORKING ACROSS KIND OF A RANGE
OF KNOWLEDGE, HELPING AND
GUARDING OUTCOMES FOR CALIFORNIA
, AND PART OF THAT I LIKE IS THE
BENEFIT OF CONNECTING WITH OUR
FEDERAL PARTNERS TO ENSURE THAT
THE IMPROVEMENT THAT WE
DEVELOPED CAN BE PUT INTO THE
NATIONAL FORECAST CAPABILITY FOR
IMPROVED PRECEPT PREDICTION.
BECAUSE WE NEED OUR FEDERAL
PARTNERS. TO, UM HAVE
CAPABILITIES THAT MEET
CALIFORNIA'S NEEDS, AND THIS
GIVES US AN OPPORTUNITY TO
COLLABORATIVELY PURSUE THOSE
THAT THE OTHER MY WIFE MIGHT NOT
HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO. SO
LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT
THE JANUARY 2023 STORMS AS DR
OFF MENTIONED NINE OF THEM IN A
THREE WEEK WINDOW. AH ANOTHER
COMPARISON FOR WATER YEARS, 2020
AND 2021, WHICH ARE IN OUR TWO
DRIEST DRIVES TWO YEAR STRETCH
ON RECORD. THERE WERE ONLY THREE
STRONG ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS IN
THAT TWO YEAR PERIOD IMPACT IN
CALIFORNIA WHERE WE HAD FOR
AMONG THE NINE STRONG IN A THREE
WEEK PERIOD. AS DR SWAIN
MENTIONED THIS STORM SEQUENCE IN
ITS SPECIAL FOOTPRINT, ALSO VERY
SIMILAR TO THE JANUARY 69.
EVENTS, WHICH IS STILL THE FLOOD
OF RECORD IN SOME LOCATIONS IN
THE SAN JOAQUIN INTOLERANT LIKE
BED REGIONS. IN THIS STORM. WE
HAD EIGHT NEW FLOODS AND RECORD
FROM VENTURA COUNTY. UP THROUGH
SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY AND
SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS ON UP
THROUGH MENDOCINO COUNTY.
INCLUDING SACRAMENTO COUNTY. SAN
FRANCISCO. REALLY THE. FULCRUM
BETWEEN STORMS THAT IMPACTED THE
NORTHERN PART OF THE STATE IN
THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE STATE.
RECORDING 17 INCHES OF RAIN IN
THAT THREE WEEK PERIOD. AS ONE
OF THE HIGHER TOTAL AMOUNTS BUT
IN UNDERSTANDING WHERE THAT SITS
RELATIVE TO THE GREAT FLIGHT OF
18 62 IN THAT SAME THREE WEEK
TIME SPAN. 18 62 HAD AN ANOTHER
SIX INCHES OF RAIN. AND THEN
DIDN'T STOP THERE, BUT WENT ON
FOR ANOTHER TWO WEEKS AT THAT
SAME PACE, SO GIVING A SENSE OF
YES, THIS WAS A VERY SIGNIFICANT
EVENT. BUT THE POTENTIAL STILL
EXISTS FOR IT TO KEEP GOING, AND
THAT'S WHERE I THINK HAVING THE
FORECAST CAPABILITY,
UNDERSTANDING WHAT'S COMING
NEXT. REALLY HELPS. AND THAT
FACILITATES THE ROLE I PLAYED
DURING THE JANUARY 2023 STARTS
BEING POSITIONED AT THE STATE
OPERATIONS CENTER. PROVIDING
SITUATIONAL AWARENESS WITH THE
UNIFIED COMMAND BRIEFINGS EACH
DAY. AH APPEARING AFTER THE
WEATHER SERVICE, PROVIDING THE
OFFICIAL FORECAST AND THEN MY
ROLE TO PROVIDE SOME CONTEXT TO
IT. AND USING THE TOOLS
DEVELOPED. WITH OUR PARTNERSHIP
WITH THE CENTER FOR WESTERN
WEATHER AND WATER EXTREMES. THEN
SPENDING THE REST OF THE TIME
WITH THE ADVANCED PLANNING UNIT
, WHICH YOU'LL HEAR ABOUT LATER
IN THE HEARINGS HERE REALLY
WORKING TO MAKE USE OF THE
INFORMATION IN A WAY THAT WE CAN
POSITION RESOURCES TO TRY AND
ACHIEVE THE GREATEST SUCCESS
POSSIBLE IN UH UM. HER RESPONSE
CAPABILITIES. TO THAT END AS. DR
SWAIN MENTIONED THERE'S STILL
MORE TO DO. WE'RE ON A GOOD PATH
. WE HAVE THE COLLABORATION. WE
HAVE THE ORGANIZATION AND IT'S
CONTINUING TO MOVE FORWARD. AND
MAKE SURE THAT THE SCIENCE
DEVELOPED IS INTEGRATED. INTO.
THE STATE PROGRAMS THAT ALLOW IT
TO BE SUCCESSFULLY APPLIED. AS
WE EXPERIENCE THESE NEW EXTREMES
AND AN EXAMPLE OF THAT I WANT TO
GIVE US THAT WE ACTUALLY HAVE AN
EMPLOYEE FROM THE CENTER FOR
WESTERN WEATHER AND WATER
EXTREMES WITH THAT SPECIALIZED
EXPERIENCE IN ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS
AND WORKING IN THE DEPARTMENT OF
WATER RESOURCES, HYDROLOGY AND
FLOOD OPERATIONS OFFICE THIS
YEAR. AND WAS PARTICIPATING IN
THE FORECAST ACTIVITIES THAT THE
STATE COOL. CONDUCTS WITH THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE,
CALIFORNIA, NEVADA RIVER
FORECAST CENTER AND THAT IS
PROVING HUGELY VALUABLE IN
SHARING THAT KNOWLEDGE AND
REALLY FACILITATING THE
INFORMATION EXCHANGE NEEDED TO
TAKE SCIENCE AND ACTUALLY PUT IT
INTO PRACTICE. WITH THAT I'LL
END MY TESTIMONY AND THANK YOU
FOR YOUR TIME. WHAT THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. MICHAEL APPRECIATE
YOUR PRESENTATION AS WELL. SO
NOW WE GO. GO AHEAD AND OPEN UP
FOR ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS BY
MEMBERS OF UP HERE WITH ME. I
JUST HAVE ONE QUICK QUESTION
POLICY FOR ANYBODY. UM HOW CAN
WE DO A BETTER JOB IN PARTNERING
ACADEMIC INNOVATION AND RESEARCH
WITH THE OPERATIONS OF OS AND
DWR? IF ANYBODY COULD ANSWER
THAT, OR MAYBE HAS BEEN
ANSWERED, BUT MAYBE ELABORATE ON
THAT. I CAN CERTAINLY, UH, AN
INDIVIDUAL SUCH AS MYSELF THAT
HAS THAT BRIDGE CAPABILITY OF
AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE
ACADEMIC WORLD AND THE
INFORMATION BEING DEVELOPED BUT
ALSO HAVING THE UNDERSTANDING OF
WHERE IT FITS. AND HOW THAT
INFORMATION CAN BE USED. BECAUSE
IT'S ONE THING TO HAVE, YOU KNOW
GREAT INNOVATIONS IN AN
OBSERVATION OR FORECAST
CAPABILITY, BUT UNTIL YOU GET IT
PIVOTED INTO USEFUL INFORMATION
OF WHAT IT'S INFORMING WHERE
YOUR PREPOSITIONING EMERGENCY
RESPONSE. WHERE YOU'RE
IDENTIFYING. VULNERABILITIES
THAT MAY HELP SET PRIORITIES FOR
INVESTMENT. I THINK HAVING THOSE
FOLKS THAT SERVICE THAT BRIDGE
ELEMENT REALLY IMPROVES THAT
CAPABILITY OF MOVING SCIENCE
INTO ACTION. OKAY. THANK YOU CAN
ADD GO AHEAD MORE. GO AHEAD. YOU
WANT TO ADD TO IT A RESPONSE?
YEAH SORRY. UH I'D LIKE TO
SUGGEST YOU KNOW THE LESSONS
WE'VE LEARNED AND WORKING WITH
THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF
WATER RESOURCES AND DEVELOPING A
RESEARCH AND OPERATIONS
PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR CENTER AT
SCRIPTS. OCEANOGRAPHY UC SAN
DIEGO, I THINK SERVES AS AN
EXAMPLE THAT COULD COULD HELP
INFORM HAD TO PROCEED WITH
REGARDS TO SPECIALIZED NEEDS FOR
THE OS COMMUNITY. AND IN
PARTICULAR THAT PARTNERSHIP
COUPLES THE INNOVATION THAT IS
BY ITS NATURE INHERENT AT THE
UNIVERSITY BASED RESEARCH
CENTER, ALONG WITH THE
COMPELLING AND CRITICALLY
IMPORTANT OPERATIONAL MISSION OF
A KEY AGENCY LIKE OH, YES. SO WE
HAVE SORT OF A ROAD MAP. I WOULD
JUST SUGGEST THAT I THINK HAS
PROVEN EFFECTIVE AND WE COULD,
YOU KNOW WORK WITH YOU TO
EXPLORE HOW THAT MIGHT APPLY TO
THE OAS SPECIFIC NEEDS. OKAY.
THANK YOU. FOR THE FOR THEM PUT
. APOLOGIES IF I COULD SHARE 11
COMMENT ALONG THAT LINES AND
JUST WANTED THE COMMITTEE TO
KNOW OR BE AWARE THAT THE, UM
THE U. C SYSTEM HAS STARTED THE
DISASTER RESILIENCY COMMITTEES
AT EACH U. U C SYSTEM, EACH U. C
CAMPUS AND SO I'M INVOLVED WITH
THE UC SANTA BARBARA CAMPUS ON
THEIR UM, DISASTER RESILIENCY
COMMITTEE. AND WE WORK TOGETHER
WITH THEM TO IDENTIFY WAYS THAT
OUR LOCAL TEAMS AT THE
UNIVERSITY AND SUPPORT OUR
CONCEPTS, UM FOR WHAT KINDS OF
RESEARCH DO WE NEED? UM WHAT
KINDS OF REAL TOOLS WOULD BE
HELPFUL, SO I'VE TALKED TO THEM
ABOUT NOT JUST RESEARCH, BUT
MAYBE THEN HAVING THE SCIENCE
BASED RESEARCH AND THEN TURNING
THAT OVER TO LIKE THE PUBLIC
ADMINISTRATION OR THE POLICY
STUDENTS AND HAVING THEM WORK ON
RECOMMENDED POLICIES TO SUPPORT
THE RESEARCH THE SCIENCE SO THAT
WE HAVE WAYS TO IMPLEMENT
LOCALLY, SO I JUST WANTED YOU TO
BE AWARE OF THAT EFFORT BY THE
U. C SYSTEM HERE IN CALIFORNIA.
OKAY THANK YOU VERY MUCH. IN THE
OTHER QUESTIONS FOR MEMBERS OF
THE NICE UP HERE. SOMEBODY
REMEMBERED DONNELLY. GO AHEAD.
APPRECIATE ALL THE PRESENTERS AS
WE CONFRONT THIS NEW REALITY. UM
SO THE QUICK COUPLE RELATED
QUESTIONS. UM WHAT IS THE STATE
OF OUR CURRENT PREDICTION AND
FORECASTING ABILITY, THE
TECHNOLOGY WE HAVE, AND I GUESS
RELATED. ARE THERE NEEDED
INVESTMENTS WE NEED TO BE
LOOKING AT TO IMPROVE OUR
PREDICTING AND FORECASTING
ABILITY. AS A STATE AND IN LIGHT
OF THAT, WHAT? AH DID
FORECASTING OF JANUARY STORMS. I
APPRECIATE THE DISCUSSION ABOUT
THAT. INSTRUCT US IN TERMS OF
FUTURE THINGS. WE NEED TO BE
DOING BETTER IN THAT REGARD. SO,
MR ANDERSON. I KNOW YOU TOUCHED
ON IT A LITTLE BIT. MAYBE YOU
CAN START HAPPY TO EXPAND ON
THAT A BIT. SO RIGHT NOW THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL
ISSUE AN OFFICIAL FORECAST
WITHIN THE 72 HOUR WINDOW. SO
THREE DAYS THEY PROVIDE
GUIDANCE. OUT TO SIX DAYS. UM.
INFORMATION THAT WE HAVE WORKING
WITH CENTER FOR WESTERN, WHETHER
WHETHER WHETHER, AND WATER
EXTREMES, UH, LOOKS AT THE FALL,
TWO WEEK MODEL RUN. AS WELL AS
SOME EXPERIMENTAL PRODUCTS IN
LOOKING OUT TO WEEK THREE, AND
THAT'S SOME PARTNERSHIP WORK
WE'RE DOING WITH THE WEATHER
SERVICE'S CLIMATE PREDICTION
CENTER, WHICH REALLY LOOKS AT
FORECASTS ARE OUTLOOKS BEYOND
TWO WEEKS. UM WHERE WE NEED TO
IMPROVE. WE HAVE A SENSE IN THAT
TWO WEEK WINDOW THAT SOMETHING
WILL HAPPEN. GETTING THE TIMING
AND THE POSITION. BETTER
IDENTIFIED. ARE REALLY SOME KEY
ELEMENTS TO THAT. UNDERSTANDING
THAT TIME BETWEEN STORMS CAN BE
ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL TO ALLOW
RUMORS TO COME DOWN A BIT BEFORE
THEY START RISING AGAIN. UM AS
WELL AS UNDERSTANDING WHICH
WATERSHED. IT'S ONE THING TO
TELL YOU. SOMETHING MIGHT HAPPEN
NORTH OF THE BAY AREA THAT'S
STILL COVERS AN IMMENSE AMOUNT
OF GROUND BUT BE ABLE TO SAY
THAT IT WILL BE WITHIN MARIN
SONOMA AND MENDOCINE Ó COUNTIES
ENABLES. HOW MUCH MORE GUIDED
RESPONSE TO HAPPEN, AND I THINK
THAT'S THE AREA OF FOCUS NOW IS
REALLY IDENTIFYING. THOSE
UNCERTAINTIES IN THE FORECAST
MODELS. THAT DEAL WITH THAT
TIMING AND POSITION. ERRORS THAT
WE ARE CURRENTLY NAVIGATING HOW
TO NAVIGATE THE UNCERTAINTY
AROUND THOSE IF I COULD ADD. UH
IN THE STORMS THAT WE HAD
HAPPENED IN THE LAST FEW WEEKS,
WE TYPICALLY SAW SOMEWHERE FROM
3 TO 5. EVEN SEVEN DAYS HEADS UP
THAT SOMETHING WAS COMING. AND
YET THE DETAILS REMAINED A BIT
UNCERTAIN IN TERMS OF BOTH
LOCATION AND INTENSITY. THE
MODEL FORECASTS TEND TO BE LOW
BIASED. WE CALL IT THE LONGER
THE LEAD TIME, SO WE KNOW THEY
CAN BE STRONGER THAN THEY APPEAR
WHEN WE FIRST SEE INDICATIONS A
FEW DAYS AHEAD, ONE OF THE
THINGS THAT HAPPENED IN ONE OF
THE EVENTS, THE ONE THAT HIT
SANTA BARBARA WAS IT UNTIL ABOUT
THREE OR FOUR DAYS AHEAD. IT WAS
AIMING AT THE RUSSIAN RIVER AREA
OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. AND THEN
AFTER SOME OF OUR MISSIONS OUT
OFFSHORE, THE FORECAST SHIFTED
SOUTHWARD INSTEAD AND RUSSIAN
RIVER INSTEAD OF HAVING A SPOT
OF RECORD, YOU KNOW, SANTA
BARBARA MOUNTAINS GOT 10 INCHES
OF RAIN AND IN IN ONE DAY, SO
WHAT? THAT'S THE SORT OF SKILL
AND CHALLENGE THAT WE FACE THE
WAYS WE ADDRESS THAT OR THROUGH
BETTER OBSERVATIONS SUCH AS THE
OFFSHORE MEASUREMENT. IN
ADDITION, ONSHORE MEASUREMENTS
AS THE STORMS ARE COMING ASHORE
, INCLUDING BRAND NEW RADARS
THAT ARE SMALLER, CHEAPER AND
TAILORED TO WEST WESTERN
MOUNTAINOUS AREAS CAN DETECT
VERY HEAVY RAIN BANDS THERE
UNDERNEATH ALL THE BIG NEXT RED
RADARS THAT C WAY UP HIGH AND
THEY ARE WHERE THE ACTION IS IN
TERMS OF DEBRIS FLOWS. IN
ADDITION, WE HAVE OPPORTUNITIES
TO EXPAND THE SKILL AND
UNDERSTANDING THE DURATION OF AN
A R, WHERE IT'S GOING TO STALL
BY MEASURING THESE STORMS
OFFSHORE AS THEY CREATE. WHAT
ARE THESE LARGE WAVES AND
ATMOSPHERIC PHENOMENA CALLED
MESO SCALE FRONTAL WAVES ABOUT
1000 KILOMETERS LONG THEY'RE
SUPER HARD TO GET RIGHT WITHOUT
SPECIALIZED MEASUREMENTS
OFFSHORE. FINALLY L. A HAD THE
TAILOR TAILORING OF A WEATHER
MODEL TO PARTICULARS FORECAST.
PROBLEM IS HOW WE GET THE BEST
FORECAST OUT OF THE MODEL AND
THAT THERE'S TONS OF ROOM TO
IMPROVE UPON. I THINK THAT IS
WHERE PART OF THE ACTION IS TO
GET DOWN TO THE SCALES IN TIMING
AND LOCATION THAT I IMAGINE. OH,
YES, YOU KNOW, WOULD
REQUIREMENTS WOULD WOULD POINT
TO. OKAY THANK YOU VERY MUCH. UM
REMEMBER WHEN YOU HAVE A
QUESTION? THANK YOU. UM SO JUST
A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND. I'VE
WORKED IN DEPLOYING NURSES TO
DISASTER AREAS, AND I KNOW HOW
IMPORTANT I REALLY APPRECIATE
THE DISCUSSION AROUND. UM YOU
KNOW, BEING ABLE TO ACCURATELY
PREDICT WHERE AND WHEN AND HOW
THINGS ARE GOING TO IMPACT
BECAUSE I THINK WHEN WE'RE
TALKING ABOUT INVESTMENTS TO
YOUR POINT, UM, THE MORE THAT WE
CAN BE ACCURATE AND THOSE
PREDICTIONS THE MORE EFFICIENTLY
WE CAN USE OUR RESOURCES BECAUSE
YOU KNOW, WE'VE BEEN IN
SITUATIONS WHERE WE DEPLOYED
NURSES TO FLORIDA AND THE
HURRICANES HITTING IN THE
BAHAMAS AND HAVING TO THEN YOU
KNOW, DO ALL OF THE WORK AND, UM
YOU KNOW, LOGISTICS TO MOVE
RESOURCES AROUND ENDS UP COSTING
A LOT OF MONEY IN THE END,
RIGHT? AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW, SO
APPRECIATE THE DISCUSSION AND
JUST WANT TO CONTINUE TO LOOK AT
HOW WE CAN MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE
INVESTING IN THINGS THAT ARE
GOING TO MAYBE COST A LITTLE BIT
UPFRONT, BUT WE'LL ACTUALLY SAVE
US MONEY IN THE END BECAUSE
WE'RE MORE EFFECTIVELY ABLE TO
PREPARE, PREVENT IMPACT AND MAKE
SURE THAT WE HAVE ACCURATE
RESPONSES AND APPROPRIATE
RESPONSES IN THE PLACES THAT WE
NEED THEM MOST, AND WE USE OUR
SOURCES WISELY. SO UM, SO YOU
KNOW, LOOK FORWARD TO MORE, YOU
KNOW, SUGGESTIONS OPPORTUNITIES
FOR US TO PARTNER ON THOSE
THINGS. THANK YOU ANY. UH
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S MATHIS. THANK
YOU, MR CHAIR. I THINK THE
BIGGEST THING I WAS KIND OF COME
AWAY WITH FROM THESE THINGS ARE
WHAT DO WE NEED TO DO IS THE
LEGISLATIVE BODY. WHAT
LEGISLATION DO WE NEED TO LOOK
AT? I KNOW NOBODY WANTS TO HEAR
. YOU KNOW, IT WAS LIKE, PLEASE
DON'T RUN ANYMORE BILLS, BUT BUT
THE FACT THAT IT IS WE HAVE TO
IN ORDER TO PINPOINT ONE NEEDS
TO CHANGE. SO FOR US, WHAT DO WE
NEED TO ACTUALLY LOOK AT AS
WE'RE RUNNING THINGS THIS YEAR
AS WE'RE COMING UP ON BILL ENTRY
DEADLINES. WHAT ARE SOME OF THE
YOU KNOW TOP 35 THINGS. WHERE IF
YOU GUYS COULD GO IN FOR ALL THE
PANELISTS? IF YOU COULD GO IN
LASER POINT SCALPEL. THIS IS
WHAT NEEDS TO GET DONE. THIS IS
THE TYPE OF LEGISLATION YOU NEED
TO DO. WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE
FOR US? WHAT DO YOU ALL SEE AS
THE EXPERTS WELL, UH, I'LL OPEN
WITH THANK YOU IN THE LAST
BUDGET SESSION. THE WORD ONGOING
WAS ADDED TO THE FUNDING FOR THE
AIR RESEARCH PROGRAM. AND THAT
IS CRITICAL. THIS IS THE FUEL
THAT CREATES THE COLLABORATION
AT THE LOCAL, FEDERAL AND STATE
LEVELS THAT HAS ALLOWED THE
ADVANCEMENTS OVER THE LAST 10
YEARS TO HAPPEN. THAT I THINK,
AS DR RALPH HAD MENTIONED
CONSERVATIVE MODEL IN TERMS OF
LOOKING AT HOW ELSE TO TARGET UM
. THE NECESSARY UH,
COLLABORATIONS NEEDED TO ENSURE
THAT THE EMERGENCY SERVICES HAVE
THE RIGHT INTELLIGENCE, TOO.
MAKE THOSE DECISIONS FOR
POSITIONING RESOURCES TO ENABLE
THE BEST RESPONSE POSSIBLE.
ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU'RE DEALING
WITH EVENTS THAT ARE GOING. TO
HAVE THE PHRASE ADDED TO IT. WE
HAVEN'T SEEN THIS BEFORE. AND I
THINK THE MORE WORK WE SPEND IN
IMPROVING THE FORECASTING, THE
BETTER. WE ARE ANTICIPATING THEM
BEING ABLE TO SAY THIS IS
OUTSIDE. WHAT WE'VE SEEN
HISTORICALLY, BUT WE STILL HAVE
A SENSE OF WHAT WE NEED TO DO TO
NAVIGATE IT. SO I SORRY. I CAN'T
PUT A FINER POINT ON IT, BUT I
THINK THAT'S THAT'S DEFINITELY
HELPFUL. IT'S AGAIN. ME BEING A
MILITARY GUY. YOU KNOW YOU YOU
PLAN A MISSION AND YOU GO. OKAY,
HERE'S HERE'S WHAT WE THINK THE
ENEMY SITUATION IS GOING TO BE.
SO HERE WE KNOW HERE'S WHAT WE
THINK THE WEATHER IS GOING TO
BE. BUT WHAT ARE THE THINGS WE
NEED TO DO TO DO THAT? BUT YOU
ALSO YOU UNDERSTAND THOSE
THINGS, BUT YOU ALSO UNDERSTAND
THAT THERE ARE POLICY THINGS.
THERE'S SOMETIMES GETTING A WAY
OF MAKING THOSE THINGS HAPPEN.
SO IF THERE'S POLICY THINGS THAT
ARE IN THE WAY WE NEED TO KNOW
ABOUT THAT, SO WE CAN HAVE IT BE
A FASTER, MORE APPROPRIATE
PROCESS. SO THAT WAY THOSE THAT
NEED THE TOOLS OR THOSE THAT
HAVE, THE TOOLS CAN ACT BETTER
OR FASTER, SOONER, MORE
PREDICTABLE. SO WE ENSURE THE
SAFETY OF EVERYBODY AND IT'S A
SMOOTHER THING. AND YOU KNOW,
IT'S HE MILITARY TERMS. IN THE
END, I THINK THAT YOU'RE NOT
GOING TO GO INTO A GUN FIGHT
WITH A NINE MILLIMETER WHEN YOU
COULD HAVE A 50 CAL, RIGHT? I
THINK IT'S THAT RECOGNITION OF
WHAT YOU'RE FACING AND BEING
ABLE TO HAVE THE RIGHT
PREPARATION AND IN TERMS OF
POLICY, SPOKE OF IT AT THE
BEGINNING OF GETTING THE
NECESSARY DECLARATIONS THAT
OPENED THE DOORS FOR THE
NECESSARY RESPONSE. TOOLS TO BE
AVAILABLE. AND THEN THINKING OF
THAT. WITH THE STANDPOINT OF
WHAT DR SWAIN MENTIONED. THAT.
IF THESE SAME STORMS ARE ALSO
THE STORMS THAT YOU HAVE TO
DRIVE YOUR WATER SUPPLY FROM HOW
DO YOU NAVIGATE? RECOGNIZING
THAT THAT'S THE WATER THAT YOU
WANT TO BE DOING SOMETHING
WITHIN THE WATER SUPPLY SENSE AS
WELL AS FLOOD MITIGATION SENSE
AND MAKING SURE THAT I BELIEVE I
BELIEVE OUR COLLEAGUE CHRIS
WARD, THAT WAS HERE HAS A HAS A
BILL SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED TO
CAPTURING ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS
THAT WERE A LOT OF US ARE
INTERESTED IN. SO I THINK THOSE
THOSE KIND OF THINGS WHERE YOU
REALLY START LOOKING AT KIND OF
A MULTIFACETED. UM, CAPABILITY
THAT WE'RE GOING TO GO IN THIS
KNOWING THAT WE'RE NOT DOING A
SINGULAR RESPONSE, BUT A
MULTIFACETED RESPONSE. THAT
MAKES SURE YOU WEREN'T SAYING
BOY. WE COULD HAVE DONE THIS,
BUT WE HAD THIS RULE. THEY GOT
IN THE WAY CORRECT. WHAT I
RECOGNIZED OVER MY TENURE HERE.
IS THAT TOO OFTEN? WE STOP
LISTENING TO THE EXPERTS AND THE
BEAN COUNTERS WHO HAVE FORGOTTEN
HOW BEANS ARE GROWN OR MAKING
DECISIONS. UM, SO WE NEED TO
LOOK AT THE PEOPLE THAT ACTUALLY
KNOW HOW THINGS ARE DONE. SO I
APPRECIATE YOUR TIME HERE AND TO
ALL THE PANELISTS. ALRIGHT ANY
OTHER SMALL PIECES OF THAT WAS
WAITING FOR YOU TO CHIME IN WELL
IN THE PROCESS OF DEVELOPING THE
ATMOSPHERIC RIVER PROGRAM WE
INCORPORATED BOTH REALLY SOUND
SCIENTIFIC ELEMENTS. TEAMS OF
EXPERTS TO WORK ON THOSE THINGS.
LINKAGES TO DWR S OPERATIONAL
REQUIREMENTS AND NEEDS RESPECT
FOR THE STATEWIDE INTERESTS AND
DIFFERENCES IN NEEDS ACROSS THE
REGION, AND THAT ENDED UP BEING
MANIFEST IN THE FORM OF STATE
LEGISLATIVE BILL THAT HELPED
PAVE THE WAY AND SET THE STAGE
FOR THIS AND VERY MUCH
APPRECIATIVE OF, UH, ASSEMBLYMAN
CHRIS WORDS, INITIATIVE AND
OTHERS ON, UH, MAYBE 30 TO
EXTEND THAT AND UPDATED TO
INCLUDE THE FORECAST INFORMED
RESERVOIR OPERATIONS COMPONENT,
BUT THAT LEGISLATIVE PART WAS, I
THINK AN ASPECT OF WHAT I WAS
REFERRING TO IN LOOK AT THE ER
PROGRAM AND HOW WE'VE WORKED
THAT AS A MODEL IN SUPPORTING
THE WRS NEEDS AS A MODEL FOR
WHAT COULD BE DONE, I THINK, UH
, FOR OH, YES NEEDS IN
PARTICULAR. THANK YOU WANTED TO
ADD REALLY SPECIFIC POINT ON TOP
OF WHAT MIKE HAD MENTIONED. I
REALLY JUST WANTED TO HONE IN ON
THIS SPECIFIC NOTION THAT WE
REALLY NEED TO BE THINKING ABOUT
, UH, DROUGHT AND FLOOD ALONG
THE SPECTRUM. AND I THINK
HISTORICALLY IN CALIFORNIA,
WE'VE SEPARATED THESE TWO THINGS
BOTH LEGISLATIVELY AND IN TERMS
OF RESPONSE, EMERGENCY RESPONSE.
AH DISASTER RESPONSE AND I THINK
THAT WE REALLY NEED TO BE CO
MANAGING, AND THAT'S NOT JUST AN
ABSTRACT STATEMENT, BUT I THINK
IT REALLY SPEAKS TO THE KINDS OF
POLICY CHANGES, UM, THAT ARE
GOING TO BE SUSTAINABLE IN THE
21ST CENTURY CALIFORNIA, WHICH
IS TO SAY, ACCOMMODATING BOTH
WATER SCARCITY AND ALSO OVER
ABUNDANCE, AND MAYBE MORE OF
BOTH AT DIFFERENT TIMES. AND
THESE SHARP TRANSITIONS BETWEEN
OVER ABUNDANCE AND SCARCITY. AND
HOW DO WE LEVERAGE ONE TO MAYBE
REDUCE THE RISK OF THE OTHER? UM
DROUGHT INFLICT KOMEN JUDGMENT
LOOKING AT BOTH OF THESE THINGS.
SO PERHAPS HEARINGS ON
SPECIFICALLY ON HOW TO CO MANAGE
THESE RISKS, RATHER THAN HOW TO
RESPOND ONLY TO FLOODS OR ONLY
TWO DROUGHTS OR ONLY TO
WILDFIRES AND THINKING ABOUT FOR
ALL OF THESE ALONG THE SPECTRUM
OF THINGS THAT WE NEED TO BE
THINKING ABOUT BALANCING ONE
AGAINST THE OTHER, SO WE DON'T
WE DON'T PUT OURSELVES IN A
POSITION WHERE WE'VE WE'VE SORT
OF ADAPTED OURSELVES INTO A
CORNER THAT MAKES IT MORE
DIFFICULT TO RESPOND TO OTHER
THINGS THAT WE KNOW ARE ALSO
GOING TO OCCUR. YOU DON'T KNOW
HOW REFRESHING IT IS TO HEAR. CO
MANAGEMENT OF DROUGHT AND FLOODS
FOR A GUY FROM THE SAN JOAQUIN
VALLEY. ALRIGHT THANK YOU ANY
OTHER COMMENTS BEFORE MOVING ON
THE SECOND PANEL? IF I COULD
JUST PILE ON VERY BRIEFLY ON
DANIEL'S GOOD REMARKS. UH ONE OF
THE I COULDN'T AGREE MORE ABOUT
THE CO MANAGEMENT ASPECT. WE DO
HAVE SOMETHING I THINK FOLKS ARE
FAMILIAR WITH NOW THAT HAS BEEN
DEVELOPED AND HAS NOW BEING, UM
, CALCULATED FOR ITS EFFICACY IS
FORECAST INFORMED RESERVOIR
OPERATIONS, THE BASIC TENET OF
WHICH IS TO USE EXISTING
INFRASTRUCTURE MORE FLEXIBLY IN
A WAY THAT IS REMAINS SAFE.
BECAUSE OF 21ST CENTURY FORECAST
INFORMATION HAVING THE SKILL
NEEDED FOR OPERATORS TO KEEP A
BIT OF EXTRA WATER AFTER A STORM
AND HAVE PLENTY OF TIME TO
RELEASE IT IF ANOTHER STORM IS
COMING, OR TO FRANKLY BE ABLE TO
CREATE MORE FLOOD SPACE AHEAD OF
THE STORM, IF THAT'S THE NEED,
SO THAT'S ONE ASPECT OF IT.
ANOTHER IS FLOOD MARK, WHICH IS
THE PROSPECT OF COURSE, USING
FLOODWATERS TO YOU KNOW,
RECHERCHE GROUNDWATER AND THE
VARIETY OF OTHER AREAS, I THINK
WERE THESE CO BENEFITS CAN BE
ACHIEVED PARTLY THROUGH BETTER
PREDICTION OF THESE VERY STORMS
THAT ARE SO IMPORTANT TO BOTH
THE HAZARDS AND THE AND OUR
PRECIOUS WATER SUPPLY. OVER.
OKAY THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND I
WANT TO THANK THE FIRST PANEL
AGAIN FOR ALL YOUR INFORMATION
BRINGING FORWARD AND WITH THAT
WE'LL GO AHEAD AND MOVE ON TO
OUR SECOND PANEL CARING THANK
YOU. OUR FIRST WITNESS ON THE
SECOND PANEL IS MARY JO FLYNN
NEVINS, WHO IS THE DIRECTOR OF
SACRAMENTO COUNTY OFFICE OF
EMERGENCY SERVICES. DIRECTOR
FLYNN, YOU MAY BEGIN. GOOD
MORNING CHAIRS RODRIGUEZ, BAUER
, CON AND GARCIA, RANKING
MEMBERS AND MEMBERS OF THE
COMMITTEE OF THIS JOINT SESSION.
I'M GRATEFUL THAT I CAN BE HERE
TODAY IN PERSON TO SHARE WITH
YOU AT SACRAMENTO COUNTY
EXPERIENCED THE PAST FEW WEEKS
AS A RESULT OF THE STORMS AND
ACCOMPANYING FLOODING AS WELL AS
OPPORTUNITIES MOVING FORWARD
THROUGH THE RECOVERY PHASE AND
BEYOND. IN ANTICIPATION OF
INCOMING STORMS SET TO IMPACT
THE AREA ON WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER
28TH SACRAMENTO COUNTY ACTIVATED
THE EMERGENCY OPERATION CENTER
IN A VIRTUAL CAPACITY,
INITIATING TWICE DAILY CALLS
WITH OUR PARTNER. I WANT TO
POINT OUT, INCLUDING THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
SACRAMENTO OFFICE, UH, TO ENSURE
CRITICAL INFORMATION WAS SHARED
AND TO INITIATE PLANNING FOR THE
MARK STREAM STORMS. THAT WERE TO
COME. IT WAS ALSO DURING THIS
TIME THAT COUNTY PARK RANGERS
SACRAMENTO SHERIFF'S OFFICE, UH
SACRAMENTO CITY POLICE AND ACT
ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS MADE
EVERY EFFORT TO WARN UNSHELTERED
RESIDENTS OF THE COMING STORMS
AND TO GET THEM TO SHELTER FOR
SAFETY. FOR ALL THE ALERT AND
WARNING TECHNOLOGY FOR WHICH WE
ADVOCATE VERY STRONGLY AND USE
SOME OF THE BEST RESOURCES THAT
WERE AVAILABLE TO US FOR THIS
NOTIFICATION OF THAT PARTICULAR
POPULATION WERE JUST FACE TO
FACE CONTACTS AND COMMUNICATION.
BECAUSE OF THEIR EFFORTS.
INDIVIDUALS DID TAKE ADVANTAGE
OF THE VARIETY OF SAFE SPACES
FOR WHICH WE HAD CAPACITY FOR
OVER 750 PEOPLE. FROM MOTEL
VOUCHERS TO RESPITE CENTERS IN
ADVANCE OF THE STORMS. UM TO
DISASTER SHELTERS ONCE CLOSURES
AND EVACUATION ORDERS AND
WARNINGS WERE GIVEN. ON DECEMBER
31ST SACRAMENTO COUNTY ISSUED A
LOCAL PROCLAMATION OF EMERGENCY
AND WE'RE GRATEFUL TO BE
INCLUDED IN THE STATE
PROCLAMATION IN THE AMENDED
DISASTER. MAJOR DISASTER
DECLARATION AND WE'RE ALSO
GRATEFUL FOR THE SWIFT
ASSISTANCE FROM BOTH THE STATE
AND FEMA. AS THE RAIN CONTINUED
IMPACTS WERE FELT WITHIN THE
SACRAMENTO SAN JOAQUIN DELTA AND
MORE SPECIFIC SPECIFICALLY FOR
SACRAMENTO COUNTY. NEAR TO AND
WITHIN THE COMMUNITY OF WILTON
ALONG THE CONSUMERIST RIVER. WE
APPRECIATE THE PARTNERSHIP WITH
THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE,
CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR'S OFFICE OF
EMERGENCY SERVICES AND THE
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF WATER
RESOURCES WHO WORKED TIRELESSLY
ALONGSIDE US TO ENSURE REQUESTED
RESOURCES MADE IT TO OUR
IMPACTED COMMUNITIES. TO INCLUDE
THE RECLAMATION DISTRICTS FOR
CRITICAL FLOOD FIGHT EFFORTS.
WITH EACH OF THE STORMS. HIGH
WINDS BROUGHT FURTHER WIDESPREAD
DAMAGE TO THE COMMUNITY AND
CAUSE SIGNIFICANT POWER
DISRUPTIONS THROUGHOUT THE
COUNTY. BOTH SMUD AND PG AND E
PROVIDED LIAISONS TO OUR
EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER,
THEREBY ENSURING RAPID
COMMUNICATION PATHWAY WAS A
RAPID COMMUNICATION PATHWAY WAS
IN PLACE FOR FIRST RESPONDERS IN
THE FIELD, WHO ARE OFTEN THE
FIRST TO BE CALLED OUT FOR DOWN
POWER LINES. AND WITHIN OUR
RECLAMATION DISTRICT PARTNERS
WHO ARE DEPENDENT ON POWER FOR
THEIR PUMPS TO DO WATER AREAS
NEAR LEVEES TO CONTINUE TO MAKE
THOSE LEVEES SAFE. LEADING UP TO
THESE STORMS. THERE ARE SOME
SPECIFIC PREPAREDNESS EFFORTS
AND PARTNERSHIPS WITH THE STATE
THAT I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT AS
SUCCESSES WHILE BRINGING
ATTENTION TO YOUR TO THE
CONTINUING NEED FOR INVESTMENT
IN THESE AREAS. FIRST THE
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF WATER
RESOURCES HAS BEEN A TREMENDOUS
PARTNER IN ENSURING OUR REGIONAL
PREPAREDNESS FOR POTENTIAL
FLOODING. JUST MONTHS PRIOR TO
THIS DISASTER, THE COUNTIES OF
SACRAMENTO, YOLO, SAN JOAQUIN
SOLANO AND COUNTER ACOSTA
PARTICIPATED IN A LARGE SCALE
FIELD AND POC EXERCISE. FOCUSED
ON A FLOOD SCENARIO WITHIN THE
DELTA. THIS EXERCISE TOUCHED ON
COMMUNICATIONS UNIFIED COMMAND
RESOURCE REQUEST PROCESSES. AND
THE TERMINOLOGY FOR EVACUATION
WARNING AND ORDERS. MANY WOULD
CONSIDER THE TIMING OF THIS
EXERCISE TO BE SHEER LUCK.
HOWEVER. I REALLY WANT TO POINT
OUT THAT THIS WAS MONTHS OF
PLANNING AND FINANCIAL
INVESTMENT FROM BOTH THE STATE
AND THE COUNTIES INVOLVED. AND
IT TOOK A LOT TO MAKE THAT
EXERCISE HAPPEN AND WOULD NOT
HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE
PRIORITIZATION AND THE FINANCIAL
INVESTMENT OF THE STATE AND THE
COUNTIES. THE END RESULT IS THAT
IMPORTANT LESSONS LEARNED DURING
THE EXERCISE WERE EFFECTIVELY
IMPLEMENTED DURING THIS
DISASTER. AND OUR PARTNERS,
TEAMS, COLLEAGUES AND
COMMUNITIES WERE BETTER PREPARED
AND READY TO RESPOND. SECOND IN
MARCH OF 2022, THE STANDARDIZED
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM, OR
SEMMES ADVISORY BOARD, MET AND
APPROVED THE EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT MUTUAL AID PLAN. THIS
IS A PLAN THAT HAS BEEN IN
PROGRESS SINCE 2017. HAS BEEN
UPDATED AFTER MANY DISASTERS.
AND WE IMPLEMENTED IT IN
SACRAMENTO COUNTY DURING THIS
DISASTER, AND I'M GRATEFUL FOR
ITS EXISTENCE AND I'M GRATEFUL
FOR OUR PARTNERS WHO CAME TO OUR
AID. STAFFING AT ALMOST ALL
ORGANIZATIONS OVER THE NEW
YEAR'S HOLIDAY WEEKEND, WHERE
REDUCED, INCLUDING WITHIN
SACRAMENTO COUNTY. THIS WELCOME
ASSISTANCE FROM OUR NEIGHBORING
JURISDICTIONS ALLOWED US TO FILL
VITAL èC POSITIONS AND
THEREFORE MEET IMMEDIATE NEEDS
AS STORMS KEPT COMING. IN
CLOSING. I WANTED TO TAKE THIS
OPPORTUNITY TO ASK ON BEHALF OF
OUR ORGANIZATION FOR YOUR
CONSIDERATION OF A FEW THINGS
FROM VERY BROAD SCOPE TO MORE
SPECIFIC REQUESTS. THE FIRST. IS
CONTINUED INVESTMENT AT THE
LOCAL LEVEL FOR EXERCISES THAT
ADDRESS THE VARIETY OF RISKS AND
HAZARDS. CALIFORNIANS FACE THIS
IS THE BEST OPPORTUNITY FOR
LOCAL COMMUNITIES TO TEST THEIR
PLANS AND ENSURE THAT THEY HAVE
THE RESOURCES AND PROCEDURES
READY FOR RESPONSE. THE SECOND
AND EVEN IF YOUR DISTRICT WAS
NOT SPECIFICALLY IMPACTED BY
THIS DISASTER IF YOU WANTED TO
MAKE AN IMPACT ON YOUR
COMMUNITIES TOMORROW. I'D ASK
THAT YOU ADVOCATE FOR
INCENTIVIZE AND PRIORITIZE
INVESTMENTS FOR LOCAL
PROFESSIONAL EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT STAFF. AND THE
TRAINING FOR THOSE STUFF. I
THINK WE'VE SEEN DEMONSTRATED
FROM DR SWAIN AND DR RALPH THAT
THE INFORMATION IS EMERGING AND
THERE AND ACCESS TO THAT
TRAINING IS WHAT OUR EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT PARTNERS NEED AT THE
LOCAL LEVEL TO HELP MAKE SOME OF
THOSE CRITICAL DECISIONS. AND
LASTLY AND MORE SPECIFICALLY
LOCALLY, UH, SACRAMENTO COUNTY
ASKS THAT YOU SUPPORT FLOOD RISK
REDUCTION IMPROVEMENTS TO RURAL
LEVEES AND ROADS INSIDE AND
OUTSIDE OF THE DELTA FOR PUBLIC
SAFETY. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR
TIME TODAY AND OPPORTUNITY TO
SPEAK WITH YOU THIS MORNING.
THANK YOU, MARY. NEXT WE'RE
MOVING ON TO OUR NEXT WITNESS,
KELLY HUBBARD, THE DIRECTOR OF
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY OFFICE OF
EMERGENCY SERVICES DIRECTOR
HUBBARD MAY BEGIN. YOU VERY
MUCH. GOOD MORNING. UM SIMILAR
TO MARRIAGE. OH, MARY JO, MYSELF
. KELSEY AND OTHERS HAVE
COORDINATED AND SPOKE BECAUSE WE
HAVE MANY OF THE SAME ISSUES. SO
I WANTED TO FIRST SHARE A LITTLE
BIT OF THE IMPACTS THAT WE SEE
IN OUR COUNTY FROM THE STORMS.
SIMILAR PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS AS
SACRAMENTO COUNTY IN TERMS OF
THE DAYS LEADING UP TO THE
STORMS ARE IMPACTS HAD
SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS TO OUR
BASINS. SEVEN COUNTY CONTROLLED
DEBRIS BASINS WERE MOSTLY IF NOT
COMPLETELY FILLED BY THESE
STORMS WITH DEBRIS AND ONE
SUBSET HARD TO BE MOVED OUT
ALMOST $18 MILLION IN DEBRIS
MANAGEMENT ALONE OR ARE BASINS.
THAT WAS ACTUALLY A GOOD, UM,
TEST OF SYSTEMS WHERE WE
RECEIVED MITIGATION MONEY TO
HELP IMPROVE OUR SYSTEMS AND OUR
RETENTION BASINS THAT WE SAW
WORK. AND WORK WELL, AND SO
WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO FOCUS
ON RECEIVING ADDITIONAL MONIES
AND SUPPORT TO CONTINUE TO
ENHANCE OUR STORM RELATED
BASINS. OUR ROADS ARE IMPACTS TO
OUR ROADS. LOCAL STATE, UM
FEDERAL, LEWIS, PADRES NATIONAL
FOREST, AND OUR PRIVATE ROADS
HAVE ALL HAD SEVERE IMPACTS. I
HAVE A PRIVATE ROAD THAT IS NOW
A 16 FT WATERFALL, UM AND NO
FUNDING OR SUPPORT TO HELP
REBUILD THAT ROAD, WHICH IS
BOTH, UM HOME AS WELL AS A
BUSINESS AGRICULTURAL BUSINESS.
AND SO THERE'S GONNA BE LOTS OF
BUSINESS IS BUSINESS. HOME
ACCESS, EMERGENCY ACCESS AND
JOBS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS ROAD
AND SO A LOT OF ROAD IMPACTS.
OUR UTILITIES PERFORMED. WELL UM
, IN THE COMMUNITY AND OUR
COUNTY, ALTHOUGH WE DO HAVE VERY
FULL RESERVOIRS NOW THAT ARE
LOOKING AT, UM TURNS FOR RELEASE
OF WATER BECAUSE OF ALREADY
HAVING DOWNSTREAM IMPACTS. AND
SO WE'RE LOOKING TO SLOWLY
RELEASED. WATER IS NEEDED, BUT
MAINTAIN AS MUCH AS WE CAN TO
CONTINUE TO FIGHT THAT DROUGHT.
SIGNIFICANT AGRICULTURAL IMPACTS
WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY. WE STILL
HAVE SOME FIELDS THAT ARE UNDER
7 TO 8 FT OF WATER WITH NOWHERE
TO DRAIN THE WATER AND WORKING
TO SEE HOW THEY CONTINUE TO WORK
TOGETHER AND LOOKED TO THAT
RECOVERY. PRIVATE COMMUNITY IS
IMPACTED THOSE WHO ARE MOST
VULNERABLE IN OUR COMMUNITY. AND
THEY'RE ALL LOOKING FOR A
SENTENCE AND HELP. WE ALSO HAVE
COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO ARE NOT
COMFORTABLE WITH GOVERNMENT AND
ASKING FOR GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE
OR COMING INTO GOVERNMENT
FACILITIES TO LOOK FOR THAT
SUPPORT. AND SO THAT BRINGS ME
TO PART OF THE CONVERSATION HERE
TODAY AND WHO ARE WHO IS OUR
VULNERABLE POPULATIONS? WHO ARE
WE TALKING ABOUT? WHO ARE MOST
VULNERABLE IN OUR COMMUNITIES.
AND I THINK THE COUNTIES HERE
TODAY REPRESENTS SOME SIMILAR
VULNERABILITIES. OR SEVEN
BARBARA COUNTY, OUR FARM WORKERS
AND OUR H TWO A WORKERS THAT
COME IN FROM OUT OF THE COUNTRY
TO HELP SUPPORT OUR AGRICULTURAL
COMMUNITY. ARE UNDOCUMENTED
COMMUNITY. WE HAVE A SIGNIFICANT
MONOLINGUAL NON ENGLISH SPEAKING
COMMUNITY, INCLUDING MASTEC Ó,
WHICH IS AN UNWRITTEN LANGUAGE.
SO HOW DO YOU COMMUNICATE AND
SHARE IMPORTANT ALERTING
INFORMATION AS WELL AS
INFORMATION ON RECOVERY TO
COMMUNITY THAT DOES NOT HAVE A
WRITTEN LANGUAGE. ARE HOMELESS
ARE SENIORS AND THEN THOSE OF
OUR COMMUNITY THAT HAVE ACCESS
AND FUNCTIONAL NEEDS. THAT MIGHT
BE PHYSICAL, SOCIAL OR MENTAL OR
OTHERWISE. WHEN WE TALK ABOUT
OUR ALERTING SYSTEMS, MOST OF
OUR ALERTING SYSTEMS EVEN WITH
ALL OF THIS NEW TECHNOLOGY DO
NOT WORK WELL, FOR THOSE WHO MAY
HAVE HEARING IMPAIRMENTS AND USE
HEARING DEVICES. AND SO THOSE
ARE CONTINUED HURDLES WITH THOSE
SOME OF THOSE COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
WITHIN EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ARE
HURDLES IN OUR ABILITIES TO
CONTINUE TO SUPPORT OUR
COMMUNITY OR IMPACTED BY
CONSTANT ACTIVATION. IN MY 3.5
YEARS AT THIS COUNTY HAVE BEEN
ACTIVATED FOR MORE THAN 80% OF
MY 3.5 YEARS HERE. 14
ACTIVATIONS FIVE LOCAL
DECLARATIONS TO FEDERAL ONE
CALIFORNIA DISASTER ASSISTANCE
ACT. AH DECLARATION AND ONE MASS
CASUALTY WITH 34 DEATHS AND 3.5
YEARS. THIS KEEPS ME AND MY TEAM
FROM BEING ABLE TO MOVE FORWARD
ON THE EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS
EFFORTS THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO BE
ABLE TO IMPLEMENT FOR OUR
COMMUNITY AND FOR OUR TEAM
MEMBERS TRAINING IS DELAYED.
EMERGENCY PLANS IMPLEMENTATION
OF LEGISLATION UM ALL OF THOSE
CONCEPTS GET DELAYED WHEN WE
HAVE THAT CONSTANT ACTIVATION.
WHEN WE TALK ABOUT LEGISLATION
AN EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT SINCE
THE END OF 2018, THERE HAS BEEN
10 AND FENDED MANDATES. THESE
ARE AMAZING GREAT IMPROVEMENTS
OR MOVEMENT WITHIN EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT THAT ARE GREAT
CONCEPTS THAT OFTEN AS A LOCAL
EMERGENCY MANAGER. WE ARE
SUPPORTIVE OF AND APPRECIATE.
CONCEPTS SUCH AS SUPPORTING
CULTURAL INCLUSION AND AWARENESS
, ACCESS AND FUNCTIONAL NEEDS,
MAKING SURE THAT PEOPLE CAN
EVACUATE WITH THEIR ANIMALS. ALL
GREAT AND WONDERFUL THINGS.
HOWEVER WE DO NOT HAVE THE
RESOURCES LOCALLY TO SUPPORT
THOSE CONCEPTS OR THAT
IMPLEMENTATION. THIRD HURDLE,
THE ONGOING SPECIALIZATION OF
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT MARY JOE
FLYNN MENTIONED HIRING LOCAL
PROFESSIONAL EMERGENCY MANAGERS.
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT IS A
PROFESSION CONTINUES TO GROW,
BUT IT'S ALSO STARTING TO HAVE
SPECIALIZATION WHEN WE TALK
ABOUT PUBLIC ALERTING BEING A
LEARNING EXPERT IS ALMOST A FULL
TIME JOB. AND YET MANY OF US DO
NOT HAVE THE ABILITY TO ASSIGN A
SINGULAR PERSON TO TAKE CARE OF
ALERTING WITHIN OUR COUNTY OR
OUR COMMUNITIES. SO GETTING TO
THE US NEEDS. TRYING NOT TO
REPEAT SOME OF THE CONCEPTS THAT
MARY JO AND OTHERS WILL MENTION
TODAY, BUT I THINK ONE THAT YOU
WILL HEAR FROM EVERY ONE OF US
IS THE NEED FOR FULL TIME
STAFFING AT THE LOCAL LEVEL TO
CONTINUE TO SUPPORT
IMPLEMENTATION OF THESE PROGRAMS
THAT WILL HELP OUR VULNERABLE
COMMUNITIES ARE PUBLIC ALERT AND
WARNING AND SUPPORT SUPPORTING
OUR LOCAL GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
SUCH AS OUR UTILITIES, LOCAL
GOVERNMENT SPECIAL DISTRICTS.
WE'D LIKE TO SEE MORE
PARTICIPATION AND ENGAGEMENT
WITH LOCAL COUNTY LEVEL
EMERGENCY MANAGERS IN THE
DEVELOPMENT OF LEGISLATION TO
ENSURE THAT THAT LEGISLATION IS
TAKING INTO THE CONSIDERATIONS
OF COUNTY GOVERNMENT, JUST AND
COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT, NOT
JUST THE CALIFORNIA OFFICE OF
EMERGENCY SERVICES AT A STATE
LEVEL, WOULDN'T THEY HAVE A
DIFFERENT, WONDERFUL AND
SUPPORTIVE, BUT THEY HAVE A
DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE ON WHAT
THE NEEDS AND CONCERNS ARE THAT
WE MAY DEAL WITH AT A LOCAL
LEVEL. AND THEN THE THIRD ASKED
. THAT IS MAYBE A LITTLE MORE
SPECIFIC TO SANTA BARBARA COUNTY
THAT I WILL BUT IMPACTS OTHER
COUNTIES. IS ALONG THE LINES OF
HOW DO WE CONTINUE TO PREPARE
FOR POST FIRE ENVIRONMENT? RIGHT
NOW, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT POST
FIRE, THERE IS ONLY TWO YEARS OF
SCIENCE BACKING UP DEBRIS FLOW
MODELING. SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT
THE POTENTIAL FOR DEBRIS FLOWS
FOLLOWING POST FIRE WE ONLY GET
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TWO YEARS OF
WHAT THE POTENTIAL RISK IS BASED
ON STORM AND SO CONTINUING TO
INVEST IN THE MODELING AND
CONSIDERATION OF HOW DO WE
SCIENTIFICALLY LOOK FORWARD ON
THE WRIST POST FIRES? BUT ALSO
OUR RISK. NOW WE HAD A
SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN OUR
GEOLOGICAL LANDSCAPE, NOT JUST
IN OUR FIRE AREAS, BUT AROUND
OUR ENTIRE COUNTY. HOW DO WE
REEVALUATE OUR LANDSCAPE FOR
LANDSLIDE DEBRIS AND MUD FLOWS?
UM HELLO? YES HAS BEEN WONDERFUL
. THEY HAVE ACTIVATED THEIR
WATERSHED EMERGENCY RESPONSE
TASK FORCE, AND THEY'RE LOOKING
AT THIS AND SO FORTH IN THE
LOCAL COMMUNITY AND THIS
QUESTION, AND SO I JUST WANTED
TO SUPPORT THEIR EFFORTS AND
NOTE THAT AS A CONSIDERATION FOR
FUTURE EFFORTS AS WELL. THANK
YOU. THANK YOU APPRECIATE
COMMENTS WILL MOVE ON TO OUR
NEXT WITNESS, DAVID REED, THE
DIRECTOR OF SANTA CRUZ OFFICE OF
RESPONSE, RECOVERY AND
RESILIENCE DIRECTOR READ, AND
YOU MAY BEGIN. GOOD AFTERNOON. I
APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO
SPEAK WITH EVERYONE HERE TODAY.
FIRST AND FOREMOST, WE HAD THE
COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ ARE
GRATEFUL FOR THE PARTNERSHIP
WE'VE SEEN FROM CALLAWAY S AND
FEMA IN SUPPORT OF OUR COMMUNITY
DURING THIS DISASTER. CALORIES,
DIRECTOR WARD IN HER ENTIRE
TEAM, INCLUDING DEPUTY DIRECTOR
BORIS WHO YOU WHO YOU WILL HEAR
FROM LATER TODAY HAVE BEEN
PARTNERS AND HAVE SUPPORTED OUR
COUNTY FROM THE ONSET OF THESE
EVENTS. WE LOOK FORWARD TO
PARTNERING WITH THEM IN THE
WEEKS AND MONTHS ON OUR RECOVERY
JOURNEY. FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO
HAVEN'T VISITED SINCE CRUZ
COUNTY. IT IS AN IDEAL PLACE TO
VISIT AND LIVE YET WE ALSO HAVE
RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITIES IN STEEP
, DYNAMIC MOUNTAINS, SUBJECT TO
WILDFIRE, FLOODING AND
LANDSLIDES. ALONG COASTAL RIVERS
AND STREAMS SUBJECT TO FLOODING
AND ALONG THE COAST. ALL OF
WHICH ARE AT RISK FROM CLIMATE
CHANGE IMPACTS THAT WE HEARD
FROM EARLIER. DURING THIS STORM
SERIES. WE SAW OVER 36 INCHES OF
RAIN IN SOME OF OUR MOUNTAIN
REGIONS, INTENSE WINDS AND
UNPRECEDENTED ALIGNMENT OF HIGH
TIDES. STORM SURGE IN OCEAN
SWELL WHICH DEVASTATED OUR
COASTLINE. WE NOT ONLY LOST
PIECES ICONIX COASTLINE, BUT WE
HAD RESIDENTS WHOSE ACCESS ROADS
DRIVEWAYS IN STATE HIGHWAYS ON
TWO DIFFERENT OCCASIONS WERE CUT
OFF. LOCATIONS FLOODED FOR THE
FIRST TIME IN 40, PLUS YEARS,
THE IMAGE BEHIND ME FROM SOCAL
VILLAGE THE FIRST TIME IN 40
YEARS, FLOODED TWICE IN 10 DAYS.
SOME RESIDENTS WENT WITHOUT
POWER FOR MORE THAN TWO WEEKS,
AND AT ONE POINT WE FACE THE
VERY REAL POSSIBILITY OF
SHELTERING TENS OF THOUSANDS OF
PEOPLE DUE TO FLOODING ALONG THE
POWER RIVER. THAT THANKFULLY,
NEVER MATERIALIZED. BUT WE CAME
VERY, VERY CLOSE. ARE CURRENTLY
SEEMS TO BE IN A CONSTANT STATE
OF DISASTER AND RECOVERY. WE
KNOW WE SHARE THIS CONDITION
WITH OTHER COUNTIES. BUT IT'S
IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THAT
WHILE MUCH OF CALIFORNIA MAY NOT
HAVE THE TRADITIONAL FOUR
SEASONS, WE NOW LIVE IN A
COMMUNITY WITH TWO DISASTER
SEASONS WHERE WE EXPERIENCE THE
IMPACTS OF EXTREME WEATHER IN
THE WINTER AND FIRE SEASON THE
REST OF THE YEAR. CONNIE IS ALSO
SUBJECT TO SEA LEVEL RISE IN
OCEAN RELATED IMPACTS ALONG ARE
DEVELOPED COASTLINE. NOT ALL
COUNTIES FACE THE FULL FORCE OF
CLIMATE CHANGE, LIKE SANTA CRUZ
COUNTY. WE STILL HAVE REBUILT
ONLY TWO THIRDS OF THE ROAD
DAMAGE SUSTAINED IN 2017 WINTER
STORMS WHERE 194 SITES WERE
DAMAGED AND OVER 110 MILLION
DOLLARS IN DAMAGE WAS WAS
CREATED. WE'RE STILL REBUILDING
FROM OUR CCU LIGHTNING COMPLEX
FIRE IN 2022. WE HAD WINTER
STORM EVENTS AND DECLARED A
DISASTER IN THE WINTER OF 21.
AND NOW WE FACE NORTH OF $75
MILLION IN DAMAGE COUNTYWIDE
WITH OUR COUNTY MAINTAINED ROAD
NETWORK SUSTAINING OVER $40
MILLION IN DAMAGE. WE ARE ALSO
IN UNDER RESOURCED COUNTY. WHICH
CANNOT WHICH CAN IMPACT NOT ONLY
OUR ABILITY TO EFFECTIVELY
RESPOND TO DISASTERS, BUT ALSO
LIMITS OUR ABILITY TO SUPPORT
RECOVERY AND BUILD RESILIENCE.
SO IN THAT SPIRIT AND IN THE
SPIRIT OF PARTNERSHIP WE WANT TO
OFFER SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR THE
COMMITTEE TO CONSIDER. FIVE
POINTS. I'D LIKE TO MAKE THE
FIRST ONE. WE SUGGEST THIS STATE
OFFER NO INTEREST LOANS TO
COMMUNITIES AT THE ONSET OF
DISASTER SO THAT WE ARE BETTER
ABLE TO RESPOND WITHOUT LIMITING
OUR ABILITIES TO PROVIDE OTHER
CRITICAL SERVICES. PROVIDING ALL
UPFRONT COSTS FOR DISASTER
RESPONSE IS EXTRAORDINARILY
DIFFICULT FOR SMALL COUNTIES
LIKE SANTA CRUZ. NUMBER. TWO WE
THINK THERE NEEDS TO BE GREATER
SUPPORT FOR SMALL SPECIAL
UTILITY DISTRICTS SUCH AS WATER
, SEWER AND FIRE SO THAT THEY
ARE MORE RESILIENT IN THE FACE
OF CLIMATE CHANGE CHALLENGES. IN
SOME CASES, WE THINK STATE
AGENCIES COULD GUIDE THESE SMALL
DISTRICTS TOWARDS PARTNERSHIPS
OR EVEN MERGERS, SO THEY DO NOT
. THEY DO NOT FAIL, UM, IN THE
FACE OF SIGNIFICANT DISASTER.
NUMBER THREE. WE THINK THAT
THERE ARE IMPROVEMENTS POSSIBLE
IN THE CLEANUP PHASE OF
DISASTER. PARTICULARLY IN THE
AREA OF VEGETATION REMOVAL.
SUBSIDIES, ALLOWING COUNTIES TO
OFFER NO COST VEGETATION OR
GREEN WASTE DROP OFF. OR HAVING
THE STATE DEPLOY CURTAIN BURNERS
OR OTHER DISPOSAL FACILITIES AT
THE NEIGHBORHOOD OR REGIONAL
LEVEL, WOULD HELP REMOVE
BARRIERS FOR RESIDENTS TO CLEAN
UP PROPERTIES AND KEEP THESE
DOWN TREES AND BRANCHES FROM
BECOMING FUELS DURING OUR FIRE
SEASON. NUMBER FOUR FROM AN
ALERT AND WARNING AND
FORECASTING STANDPOINT, WE THINK
THAT THEY'RE IMPROVEMENTS TO BE
MADE THE STATES DESIGNATED ALERT
AND WARNING SYSTEM RAVE. SO THAT
WE CAN MESSAGE IN A MORE PRECISE
AND TIMELY MANNER TO COMMUNITIES
AT RISK. WE HAVE DELAYED THE
IMPLEMENTATION OF THIS TOOL
BECAUSE IT DOESN'T CURRENTLY
MEET OUR NEEDS. FOR FORECASTING
. WE ARE SEEING THAT THE
CALIFORNIA NEVADA RIVER
FORECASTING MODELS ARE NOT
ACCOUNTING FOR SOME OF THE
CONDITIONS. DR SWAIN REFERENCED
EARLIER AS WE AS WELL AS OTHER
CONDITIONS LIKE FULL RESERVOIRS
OR RESERVOIR RELEASES. IN FACT,
THE FORECAST CENTER TURNED OFF
THE ENSEMBLE MODEL DATA FOR THE
SANDLER INTO THE RIVER BECAUSE
IT WAS NOT ACTOR ACCURATELY
REFLECTING PROBABILITIES OF
STAGE LEVELS. IT CREATED A
FLYING BLIND SITUATION FOR US AT
THE COUNTY AND WITH THE NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE IN TERMS OF HOW
WE WERE EXPECTING THAT RIVER TO
RESPOND. LASTLY WE THINK THERE'S
IMPROVEMENTS THAT COULD BE MADE
TO STATE AND FEDERAL HAZARD
MITIGATION PROGRAMS SO THAT WE
CAN IMPROVE OUR INFRASTRUCTURE
AND MITIGATE OUR RISK MORE
EFFECTIVELY. MANY HAZARD
MITIGATION PROJECTS DO NOT PASS
THE INITIAL COST BENEFIT
ANALYSIS. AND SO RATHER THAN
BEING PROACTIVE WE'RE ALWAYS
REACTIVE, WAITING FOR A ROAD OR
BRIDGE TO FAIL COMPLETELY BEFORE
WE CAN DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE
ISSUE. SECONDLY WE BELIEVE THAT
DISPERSEMENT OF HAZARDOUS FUEL
MITIGATION FUNDING SHOULD LOOK
AT IT SUSTAINABLE FUNDING
ELEMENT TO HIGH RISK COMMUNITIES
AS WELL AS A GRANT BASED
ALLOCATION. WE CAN BUILD MORE
CAPACITY IN OUR COUNTY IF WE
KNOW THERE ARE SUSTAINING
FUNDING STREAMS TO BUILD OFF OF
RATHER THAN FIGHTING FOR GRANT
DOLLARS WITH EVERY OTHER COUNTY
IN THE STATE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR
TIME, AND I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER
QUESTIONS AT THE END. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION
. NEXT. WE'RE GOING TO OUR NEXT
WITNESSES. KELSEY SCANLON, THE
EMERGENCY SERVICE PLAN FOR
MONTEREY COUNTY. YOU MAY BEGIN.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. I JUST WANTED
TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO
SECOND WITH MY COLLEAGUES HAVE
SAID THEY HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY,
UM UM AFTER AND, UM. BY
EFFECTIVE IN THEIR COMMUNICATION
OF THE CHALLENGES THAT WE FACE
AND AS AN INDUSTRY, ESSENTIALLY
WHAT WE ALSO WITNESSED WAS A
RAPID AMOUNT OF WATER,
OVERWHELMING OUR WATERSHED AND
WATER RESOURCES VERY QUICKLY,
UM, SPECIFICALLY THE PART OR A
RIVER THE AND THE POPULAR RIVER
LEVEE SYSTEM, THE CARMEL RIVER,
THE BIG SUR RIVER, THE ME UNTIL
RESERVOIR. THE ROYAL SACO RIVER
IN THE SALINAS RIVER. UM AND SO
IT RESULTED IN JUST ABOUT EVERY
PERSON IN THE COUNTY BEING
IMPACTED BY EVACUATION ORDERS
AND WARNINGS, FLOODING,
ETCETERA, WHETHER THEY WERE
IMMEDIATELY WITHIN THE ZONE OR
ISOLATED BY THESE LARGE BODIES
OF WATER, ESSENTIALLY CREATING
ISLANDS. UM FOR, UH, CONTEXT
WE'RE STILL ACTIVELY RESPONDING
TO A COMMUNITY IN BIG SUR
APPROXIMATELY 160 PEOPLE WHO
HAVE BEEN ISOLATED BY LANDSLIDES
ON STATE ROUTE ONE. FOR ALMOST
37 DAYS WITHOUT ACCESS TO
COMMODITIES AND NECESSARY
RESOURCES TO SURVIVE. UM I DO
WANT TO TAKE A MOMENT TO
ACKNOWLEDGE THAT, UM WE ARE
EXTREMELY PROUD TO NOT HAVE HAD
ANY INJURIES OR FATALITIES, AND
THAT WAS A DIRECTOR OF CULT OF
THE VAST AMOUNT OF EMERGENCY
ALERTS THAT WENT OUT TO THE
COMMUNITY EARLY AND OFTEN. BUT
ALSO REALLY A RESULT OF THE
COLLABORATION BETWEEN OUR FIRE.
LOTS OF FIRE AND LAW PARTNERS,
ENGINEERS, HYDROLOGISTS AND
METEOROLOGIST TO MAKE TIMELY AND
EFFECTIVE LIFESAVING DECISIONS.
I MEAN, IT REALLY WAS A PERFECT
EXAMPLE OF GOOD GOVERNMENT. THE
OPERATIONAL AREA. YOU SEE, IT'S
STILL PRESENTLY ACTIVE AND HAS
BEEN ACTIVE SINCE DECEMBER. 26TH
IN THE OPERATIONAL AREA. WE HAD
FOUR USCS ACTIVATED AT, UH, AT
LEAST HALF OF THE TIME, AND IT
HAS BEEN ACTIVE FOR 37 DAYS. UM
WE PROCESSED OVER 1400 RESOURCE
REQUESTS JUST IN THE COUNTY èC
WITH 150 STAFFERS SERVING AT
LEAST 1 12 HOUR SHIFT DURING
THIS ACTIVATION. UM THROUGHOUT
THE INCIDENT WE HAD OVER
CUMULATIVELY, NOT AT ANY GIVEN
ONE POINT IN TIME, BUT
CUMULATIVELY WE HAD ALMOST
20,000 PEOPLE EVACUATED DUE TO
FLOODING THERE WERE ABOUT 5000
STRUCTURES THAT WERE THREATENED
BY POTENTIAL FLOODING AND 100
THAT HAD WATER IN THEM OR WERE
DAMAGED OR DESTROYED. UM, AND
THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF TIME THAT
PEOPLE WERE EVACUATED WAS
APPROXIMATELY 18 DAYS STRAIGHT.
WE WERE ABLE TO STAND UP FOR
TEMPORARY EVACUATION POINTS,
WHICH SERVED OVER 100 AND 50
PEOPLE. WE STOOD UP NINE
EMERGENCY SHELTERS, WHICH SERVED
OVER 800 PEOPLE DURING THAT TIME
PERIOD, AND A LOT OF THIS IS DUE
TO THE STATE AND FEDERAL
RESOURCES THAT WE REQUESTED. UM
I WOULD LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE
CALLOWAY. YES SPECIFICALLY THE
SOCK AND THEY WERE PHENOMENAL
RESOURCE AND PARTNER IN MAKING
SURE THAT WE RECEIVED THE
RESOURCES WE NEEDED TO PROTECT
LIVES AND PROPERTY. AND THAT
LIST ON THE RIGHT OR OLDER,
STATE AND FEDERAL RESOURCES THAT
WERE PROVIDED TO US AND WE COULD
NOT HAVE BEEN SO SUCCESSFUL
WITHOUT THEM, AND I WOULD
CONTINUE TO ENCOURAGE, UM, OUR
STATE PARTNERS TO CONTINUE TO
PROVIDE SUPPORT TO LOCAL
JURISDICTIONS IN SUCH AN
EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE MANNER.
OVERALL LIKE I SAID, WE HAD OVER
100 RESIDENTIAL STRUCTURES THAT
WERE DAMAGED. WE HAD EIGHT WATER
AND WASTEWATER TREATMENT
FACILITIES THAT WERE EITHER
THREATENED OR IMPACTED AND HAVE
SUFFERED DAMAGES 20,000 ACRES OF
AGRICULTURAL LAND 30 MILLION IN
RESPONSE COSTS, 20 MILLION AND
PERMANENT REPAIRS AND 75 MILLION
IN OUR IMPACT TO THE AG
INDUSTRY. WE HAVE STOOD UP A
LOCAL ASSISTANCE CENTER, WHICH
HAS SERVED ALMOST 2000
HOUSEHOLDS IN 10 DAYS, WHICH IS
QUITE FANTASTIC. UM AND ALL THAT
INFORMATION TO, UM SECOND WHAT
MY COLLEAGUES HAVE ALREADY SAID,
BUT TO REALLY GET INTO SOME OF
OUR BIG PROBLEMS, WHICH IS WE DO
HAVE A HOUSING CRISIS, AS DO
MOST COUNTIES IN THE STATE OF
CALIFORNIA. UM AND BECAUSE OF
THE WAY FLOODING OCCURS WITHIN
OUR COUNTY. IT'S DIFFICULTY
STAND UP THE SHELTERS THAT WE
HAD. UM AND SO WE'RE VERY
ENCOURAGING OF NON CONGRESS
SHELTERING SPECIFICALLY HOTEL
VOUCHERS, WHICH ARE NOT
CURRENTLY AN ELIGIBLE EXPENSE
UNDER CEDA AND PUBLIC ASSISTANCE
. UM A LOT OF OUR HOMELESS OR AT
HOUSED POPULATIONS ARE NOT
SUCCESSFUL IN CONGREGATE,
SHELTERING, NOR DO WE HAVE THE
LOCAL RESOURCES TO STAND UP THE
MASSIVE AMOUNT OF SHELTERS THAT
WE WERE THAT WE DID DURING THIS
FLOOD. IT WAS IT WAS VERY
DIFFICULT AND WE RELIED ON
OUTSIDE RESOURCES. UM WHICH IS
NOT NECESSARILY THE MOST
SUSTAINABLE, SUSTAINABLE
PRACTICE. UM WE ARE VERY MUCH
INTERESTED IN WE WOULD LIKE
SUPPORT AND MORE REFINED
FLOODPLAIN MAPPING. THIS HELPS
US MAKE REAL TIME DECISIONS
BASED ON YOU KNOW, ADEQUATE
INFORMATION, WHICH IS NOT
SOMETHING THAT I COULD SAY WE
REALLY HAD, SPECIFICALLY BECAUSE
OUR STREAM GAUGES WERE JUST THEY
WERE OFF. THEY WERE NOT AS
ADEQUATE AS WE NEEDED THEM TO BE
MORE ACCURATE AS WE NEEDED THEM
TO BE. SO MORE FUNDING FOR
STREAM GAUGES. WE HAVE SEVERAL
BLIND SPOTS ALONG THE SALINAS
RIVER WHERE WE JUST DIDN'T KNOW
WHAT THE FLOW IS LOOKING LIKE,
AND WE HAD TO WAIT UNTIL THE
PEAK HIT SEVERAL MILES
DOWNSTREAM, AND SOME MORE
FUNDING FOR STREAM GAUGES WOULD
BE EXTREMELY USEFUL IN REAL TIME
DATA GATHERING. UM ONE OF THE
CHALLENGES THAT WE ARE
ANTICIPATING ALREADY IS
PERMITTING FOR CATEGORY C
THROUGH G WORK. SO UM, THE
PERMANENT WORK SPECIFICALLY NEAR
WATERWAYS. UM, THE AMOUNT OF
PERMITTING THAT'S GOING TO BE
REQUIRED WILL LIKELY EXTEND
BEYOND THE TIME PERIOD FOR WHICH
WE HAVE TO COMPLETE CATEGORY C
THREE G WORK, WHICH MEANS THAT
THE COST WILL ESSENTIALLY FALL
TO THE COUNTY WITHOUT
REIMBURSEMENT FROM FEMA, OR C D.
A AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION
. UH WE REALLY ARE STRUGGLING TO
FIGURE OUT HOW TO, UM, YOU KNOW,
CLEAN STREAMS AND RIVERS POST
FLOOD, UH, BETWEEN PROPERTY
OWNERSHIP AND ENVIRONMENTAL
REGULATION. UH WE'RE ALMOST KIND
OF HANDCUFFED TO NOT DO ANYTHING
AT ALL. WHICH IS, UM UH JUST
SUCH A DETRIMENT TO THE
COMMUNITY AND THE ENVIRONMENT. I
WAS LIKE SECOND, MY COLLEAGUES
AND IDENTIFYING THAT THERE NEEDS
TO BE MORE MODIFIED POLICIES TO
FEASIBLY ALLOW FOR FEDERAL
MITIGATION PROJECTS TO OCCUR ON
PRIVATE PROPERTY, SO THE BEST
WAY WE CAN CREATE A RESILIENT
COMMUNITY AND HAVE FEWER IMPACTS
AND FUTURE DISASTERS IS TO
ENCOURAGE PRIVATE PROPERTY
OWNERS AND INCENTIVIZE THEM
ESSENTIALLY TO PROTECT
THEMSELVES FIRST. AH INSTEAD OF
RELYING SO MUCH ON GOVERNMENT,
UH, FOR LIFE AND SAFETY PURPOSES
, ESSENTIALLY, UM, SO AND THEN
THIS COMES TO OUR SECOND TO LAST
POINT, BUT BOTH ARE VERY SIMILAR
, WHICH IS ADDITIONAL FUNDING
FOR PERSONNEL. UM WE HAVE BEEN
ACTIVATED FOR 37 DAYS AND WE DO
NOT HAVE THE STAFF THAT WE NEED
TO START WITH AN EMPTY FOR THAT
LONG. WE BURNED OUT OUR STAFF
VERY QUICKLY, AND YOU HAVE BEEN
DOING SO FOR THE LAST SEVERAL
YEARS DUE TO COVID WILDFIRES.
UM, THIS TIME LAST YEAR WE WERE
RESPONDING TO THE COLORADO FIRE
AND THE TONGA TSUNAMI IN THE
MIDDLE OF JANUARY. SO THIS VERY
MUCH IS AN ALL HAZARDS COUNTY AS
I'M SURE OTHER COUNTIES IN THE
STATE ARE AND WE DO NOT HAVE
ADEQUATE STAFFING FOR THAT
SUSTAINED LEVEL OF SERVICE. SO
WE HAD ESSENTIALLY REACHED OUT
TO OUR COUNTY OR OUR MUTUAL AID
PARTNERS TO REQUEST EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT, MUTUAL AID, AND
EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM WERE
ALSO EXCUSE THE PLANET INUNDATED
. THEY DID NOT HAVE THE CAPACITY
TO SEND MUTUAL AID TO OTHER
JURISDICTIONS BECAUSE THEY WERE
ALSO IMPACTED, AND THEY WERE
ALSO SHORT STEPPED IN. THE FEW
COUNTIES THAT WEREN'T IMPACTED
ARE SMALLER PROGRAMS THAT MAYBE
HAVE ONE OR TWO PEOPLE IN THEM,
AND THEY CAN'T AFFORD TO SEND
THEIR STAFF OUT OF COUNTY SO WE
REALLY NEED TO FOCUS MORE ON
FINDING FUNDING FOR EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL WITHIN THE
OPERATIONAL AREA, BUT ALSO MORE
IMPORTANTLY, WITHIN THE LOCAL
INCORPORATED JURISDICTIONS. A
LOT OF OUR LOCAL UCS. REALLY
FALL TO THE FIRE POLICE
DEPARTMENT AND THEY DO NOT HAVE
THE SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE FOR
LARGE SCALE DISASTERS THAT ARE
LIKELY GOING TO IMPACT THEM. UM
AND THEN MY FINAL POINT IS THAT
KAREN SHELTER IS ONE OF THE MOST
SIGNIFICANT AND IMPORTANT
SERVICES A LOCAL GOVERNMENT CAN
PROVIDE FOR THE RESIDENTS WHO
ARE DISPLACED BY AN EMERGENCY
AND WE END UP RELYING ON THE
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL
SERVICES TO PROVIDE SHELTER
STAFF BECAUSE OURS ARE ARE
ALREADY HAVE MANDATES OR THEY'RE
BURNT OUT FROM PAST DISASTERS.
UM SO FUNDING FOR EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL WITHIN
SOCIAL SERVICES DEPARTMENTS IN
THE OPERATIONAL AREAS. WOULD
SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGE THE LIVES
OF OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS IT
WOULD ALLOW FOR THEM TO RECEIVE
THE NECESSARY CARE AND SHELTER
SERVICES, BUT THEY ARE REQUIRED
WHEN THEY'RE DISPLACED, BUT IT
WILL ALSO BE ABLE TO CONNECT OUR
OWN HOUSED POPULATION TO ACTUAL
LONG TERM SOCIAL SERVICES AND TO
HELP THEM TRANSITION INTO
PERMANENT HOUSING, WHICH WOULD
ASSIST IN THAT HOUSE HOUSING
CRISIS. UM THAT WE'RE ALL
EXPERIENCING. SO THAT'S REALLY
HIGH LEVEL SUMMARY, BUT I DO
REALLY WANT TO THANK OUR STATE,
FEDERAL AND LOCAL PARTNERS, UM,
ESPECIALLY AT MY COLLEAGUES FROM
SANTA CRUZ, WHO SHARE THE POWER
OF RIVER AND PERU RIVER LEVEE
SYSTEM WITH US WE WOULD NOT HAVE
BEEN SO SUCCESSFUL WITHOUT THEM
, BUT I WILL SAY THAT THERE IS
MORE WORK TO BE DONE AND MORE
RESOURCES THAT NEED TO BE
COMMITTED. WE ARE VERY FORTUNATE
HERE IN MONTEREY COUNTY TO BE
RESOURCED, UM 20 AND IT STILL
WAS NOT SUFFICIENT. UM AND I
ENCOURAGE EVERYONE IN THE ROOM
TO REALLY CONSIDER HOW IT IS
THAT WE ARE PREPARING OUR
COMMUNITIES, UM, AND WHAT TYPES
OF MITIGATION AND PREPAREDNESS
ACTIVITIES WE CAN DO TO REDUCE
THE IMPACT AND RESPONSE NEEDS
THAT WE HAVE JUST WITNESSED IN
WHAT IT SOUNDS LIKE. IT'S NOT
EVEN CLOSE TO WHAT THE MEGA
STORM WOULD LIKELY IMPACT. SO
YEAH, I JUST WANTED TO SAY THANK
YOU. THANK YOU TO OUR STATE
PARTNERS. THANK YOU TO OUR
FEDERAL PARTNERS. UM, AND IF YOU
HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, I'M MORE
THAN HAPPY TO ANSWER THEM. THANK
YOU, KELSEY FOR THE PRESENTATION
. NOW WE'LL MOVE ON TO HEAR FROM
OUR COW OS DEPUTY DIRECTOR. OF
RECOVERY OPERATIONS. ORION
BURRESS, DEPUTY DIRECTOR BRIS
WHEN YOU MAY BEGIN GOOD MORNING
CHAIRS OF THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS
OF EACH COMMITTEE AND THANK YOU
FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK
TODAY. OVER THE PAST MONTH,
CALIFORNIA'S EXPERIENCED
MULTIPLE LARGE AND DAMAGING
STORMS THAT PASSED THAT POSE A
DANGEROUS AND DYNAMIC THREATS
WHO CAN COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT
OUR STATE. WE HAVE EXPERIENCED
DESTRUCTIVE FLOODING OF HOMES
AND INFRASTRUCTURE. LEVEE
BREACHES AND OVER TOPPINGS,
MUDSLIDES, HURRICANE FORCE WINDS
AND MANY OF OUR COMMUNITIES AND
EVEN A TORNADO. NUMEROUS
COUNTIES WERE FORCED TO ORDER
EVACUATIONS OF WHOLE COMMUNITIES
, EXECUTE SEARCH AND RESCUE
EFFORTS AND PUT IN PLACE
EMERGENCY MITIGATION ACTIVITIES
TO LIMIT THE DAMAGE AND THREATS
POSED TO CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS.
THE IMPACTS OF THESE STORMS HAVE
BEEN SIGNIFICANT AT THE HEIGHT
OF THE INCIDENT ABOUT 55,856
PEOPLE WERE UNDER EVACUATION
ORDERS. 26 SHELTERS WERE OPENED
AND 13 DIFFERENT COUNTIES,
APPROXIMATELY 531,600 HOUSEHOLDS
WERE WITHOUT POWER STATEWIDE TO
DATE. THIS IS ASTRID SALLY
RESULTED IN 21 FOR SALAD. 21
FATALITIES. FROM 13 DIFFERENT
COUNTIES. WE KNOW FROM
EXPERIENCE THAT THESE TYPES OF
WIDE SCALE FLOODING EVENTS
REQUIRE A WHOLE OF GOVERNMENT
APPROACH TO SUCCESSFULLY MEET.
THE NEEDS OF THE STATE. AND
ENSURE ALL AVAILABLE
INTELLIGENCE AND RESOURCES ARE
PROPERLY UTILIZED. CLOSE
COORDINATION IS REQUIRED. FROM
LOCAL, STATE AND FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT AND INFORMATION
SHARING NEEDS TO BE EFFECTIVE IN
CLOSE. TO BE ENTERTAINING THIS
AS YOU'VE ALREADY HEARD. THE
STATE CLIMATOLOGIST MIKE
ANDERSON WAS EMBEDDED IN THE
STATE OPERATIONS CENTER,
CONTRIBUTING TO THE ADVANCED
PLANNING EFFORTS ALONGSIDE KEY
STATE AND FEDERAL
REPRESENTATIVES THAT HAVE
JURISDICTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES.
AND BRING RESOURCES TO THE FIGHT
. HE PROVIDED VITAL SUPPORT
IDENTIFYING THE 17 MOST
VULNERABLE AREAS THROUGHOUT THE
STATE. AND AT THIS POINT, I
WOULD LIKE TO THANK HIM. FIRST
PARTNERSHIP. OUR FEDERAL
PARTNERS ALSO PROVIDED SUPPORT,
UTILIZING THEIR LIGHT DETECTION
AND RANGING TECHNOLOGY TO
IDENTIFY AN URBAN AREAS FORECAST
THAT'S A FLOOD, SUCH AS THE CITY
OF MERCED. DURING THE EVENT OF
THE LINES OF COMMUNICATION
BETWEEN THE STATE OPERATIONS
CENTER IN THE FLOOD OPERATION
CENTER ALWAYS OPEN AND
CONTINUOUSLY USED EFFECTIVELY IN
PREPARATION FOR AND DURING THE
EVENT, THE GOVERNOR ACTIVATED
THE STATE OPERATIONS CENTER TO
LEVEL ONE AND DIRECTED AND ALL
OF GOVERNMENT ADVANCED PLANNING
EFFORT TO ENSURE THAT FEDERAL,
STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
UNDERSTOOD WHERE MAJOR FLOODING
COULD OCCUR. WHEN IT COULD OCCUR
IN THE EXTENT OF THE POTENTIAL
IMPACTS. THIS WAS CRITICAL TO
INFORMANT ALL PREPOSITION OF
EMERGENCY RESPONSE ASSETS,
EVACUATION DECISION MAKING AND
TARGETING PRIORITY POPULATIONS,
WHICH WILL EXPAND ON LATER IN
THIS PRESENTATION. IN ADDITION
TO CALIFORNIA STATE WANTED
CENTER SPECIFICALLY REACHED OUT
TO THE KEY STAKEHOLDERS TO
ENSURE OUR LOCAL PARTNERS. ARE
READY AND CAPABLE OF SENDING
ALERTS TO IMPEDING STORMS AND TO
ADVISE THAT THE ALERT AND ONE IN
PROGRAM IS AVAILABLE. 24 7 FOR
ANY NEEDED SUPPORT. THE ONE IN
CENTER ALSO MONITORED AND SHARED
OUR LOCAL ACTIVATED WIRELESS
EMERGENCY ALERTS WITH THE
REGION'S LOWER FIRE, TRIBAL AND
SOCKS FOR SITUATION AWARENESS.
OVERALL 2000 WEATHER PRODUCTS
WERE RECEIVED BY THE WARNING
CENTER, INCLUDING 1950, WHETHER
NOTIFICATIONS TO THE EXECUTIVE
DUTY OFFICER ON DUTY OFFICERS,
WHICH INCLUDED FLASH FLOODS,
DEBRIS FLOW, AVALANCHE WARNING,
FREEZE WARNINGS AND HIGHLIGHTING
BURN SCAR THREATS. 207
PROCLAMATIONS, 12 PERSONAL
LOCATOR BEACON SEARCH AND RESCUE
REQUESTS WERE RECEIVED 13
EMERGENCY REPORTS 150 EMAILS TO
US. SAFETY PLANNING TEAM 60 DUTY
OFFICER ASSISTANCE REQUEST. AND
FINALLY 750 COW TRANS REPORTS,
WHICH INCLUDED ROAD CLOSURES
FROM MUDSLIDES, FLOODING, DEBRIS
FLOW, AVALANCHES AND SINKHOLES.
OUR STATE HAS SEEN SEVERE STORMS
IN THE PAST, 2017 54 COUNTIES
PROCLAIMED A LOCAL STATE OF
EMERGENCY FROM A SIMILAR FLURRY
OF ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS. SINCE
THEN, CALORIE S IN OUR STATE
PARTNERS HAVE BOASTED OUR
RESPONSE CAPABILITIES. THE
STATE'S RESPONSE TO THIS
DISASTER WAS SIGNIFICANTLY
ENHANCED BY TWO RECENT
INVESTMENTS BY THE LEGISLATURE
IN THE ADMINISTRATION. ONE WAS
THE PERMANENT INCIDENT SUPPORT
TEAM, WHICH SERVED AS THE CORE
AROUND WHICH THE STATE
OPERATIONS CENTER RESPONSE
OPERATED ENHANCING COORDINATION
ACROSS STATE AGENCIES. AND UP
AND DOWN THE DRESS DISTRICT
LADDER WHILE ALSO INCREASING THE
ORGANIZATIONAL ENDURANCE AS THIS
MULTI WEEK, MAJOR RESPONSE
CONTINUED. ALSO THE VIRUS ALL
HAZARD MUTUAL AID CAPABILITY,
WHICH WAS DEPLOYED TO PINPOINT
LEVY DAMAGE. FOR TEAMS ON THE
GROUND PROVIDED BROAD SITUATION
, AWARENESS OF MUDSLIDES AND
FLOODING GENERALLY ENSURE THAT
INCIDENT COMMANDERS IN STATE
OFFICIALS HAD THE INFORMATION
NEEDED FOR DECISION MAKING. IN
ADDITION TO THESE CRITICAL
INVESTMENTS, IMPORTANT SHIPS, WE
HAVE INCREASED THE AMOUNT AND
EXPANDED THE CHRIST THE CRITERIA
OF PRE POSITIONED ASSETS. DO YOU
PREFER TO PREPARE FOR AND
MITIGATE THE IMPACTS OF THE
WEATHER EVENT? CALAVIUS IN OUR
STATE AGENCY PARTNERS,
PREPOSITIONED RESOURCES AND
STRATEGIC LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT
THE STATE BEFORE THE FIRST
ATMOSPHERE, ATMOSPHERIC RIVER
REACHED OUR SHORES.
CONSIDERATIONS FOR PREPOSITION
OF RESOURCES INCLUDED FORECASTED
PRECEPT IMITATE PRECIPITATION
AMOUNTS MONITORING OF CALIFORNIA
WATERWAYS VIA THE CALIFORNIA
NEVADA RIVER FORECAST CENTER.
INNOVATION MODELING ESTIMATED
IMPACTED POPULATIONS WITH
INNOVATION AREAS, CRITICAL
INFRASTRUCTURE, HOSPITALS AND
CARE FACILITIES, MAJOR ROADWAYS
AND LIFELINE ROUTES IN AREAS
VULNERABLE TO LANDSLIDES. AND
TWO MUDFLOWS. THE IMPACT OF
VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES AT RISK
ALSO INFLUENCED DECISIONS ON THE
LOCATION OF THOSE PREPOSITIONED
RESOURCES. EXAMPLES OF THIS
STRATEGY INCLUDED PREPOSITION IN
MERCED WERE HIGH WATER VEHICLES
WERE PLACED NEAR VULNERABLE
COMMUNITIES AT RISK. SIMILAR
PREPOSITION AND DECISIONS
OCCURRED FOR AREAS OF MONTEREY
AND SANTA CRUZ WITH COMMUNITIES
ALONGSIDE THE RIVERS YOU
RECENTLY HEARD ABOUT TODAY, FIRE
AND RESCUE RESOURCES WERE PRE
POSITIONED IN 26 COUNTIES
THROUGHOUT THE STATE, THE STATE
TO ENSURE FIRMLY UH, TIMELY
DEPLOYMENT. UH IF THE NEED
AROSE, WHICH IT DID. 203 RESCUES
CAME FROM THE USE OF MUTUAL AID
PREPOSITION RESOURCES, WHICH
WERE MADE UP OF 501 RESOURCES
FROM 93 FIRE AGENCIES, INCLUDING
1531 PERSONNEL RESOURCES,
INCLUDING CALORIES, ENGINES,
LOCAL GOVERNMENT ENGINES, DOZERS
AIRCRAFT HAND CREWS. DISPATCHER
INCIDENT MANAGE MANAGEMENT TEAM
MEMBERS REGIONAL TASK FORCES IN
SWIFT WATER RESCUE. ASSETS AS
WELL. YOU WILL HEAR MORE DETAILS
FROM OUR MILITARY DEPARTMENT
LATER ON THE MISSION EXECUTIONS
OF THOSE PREPOSITIONS RESOURCES
AS WELL. TO SUPPORT LOCAL
GOVERNMENT EFFORTS FROM MASS
CARE AND SHELTER OPERATIONS.
CALORIES ALSO PRE POSITIONED
CARE AND SHELTER COMMODITIES
STRATEGICALLY THROUGHOUT THE
STATE. COME OUT OF THE START AT
THESE LOCATIONS. AREAS INCLUDED
SPECIALIZED EQUIPMENT FOR PEOPLE
WITH ACCESS AND FUNCTIONAL
NEEDS, INCLUDING 88 COMPLIANT
CUTS AND ACCESSIBLE SHOWERS.
SINCE PRESIDENT BIDEN'S APPROVAL
OF A FEDERAL DISASTER
DECLARATION. WE HAVE BEEN
WORKING HAND IN HAND WITH OUR
FEDERAL COLLEAGUES FROM NOT ONLY
FEMA. BUT ALSO THE COAST GUARD,
THE ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS AND
OTHERS TO DEPLOY AIR AND GROUND
ASSETS AND EMERGENCY SUPPLIES TO
SEVERAL AREAS THROUGHOUT THE
STATE. AND WE ARE EXTREMELY
APPRECIATIVE OF ALL THE FEDERAL
SUPPORT PROVIDED TO THE STATE
DURING THIS EXTREMELY EVENT. IN
ADDITION TO LOCAL ASSISTANCE
CENTERS. WE HAVE SEEN DISASTER
RECOVERY CENTERS. OPEN UP IN
MERCED, MONTEREY, SACRAMENTO,
SANTA CRUZ SAN LUIS OBISPO
COUNTY'S WITH ADDITIONAL SENDERS
PENDING OVER 6300 HOUSEHOLDS
HAVE ALREADY BEEN SERVED IN
THESE LOCATIONS. STATEWIDE
SURVIVORS ARE ABLE TO UTILIZE
DISASTER RECOVERY CENTERS TO
REGISTER FOR ASSISTANCE. GAIN
VALUABLE INFORMATION ON ALL
RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO SUPPORT
ALL CALIFORNIANS DURING THIS
DIFFICULT TÌM. OVER THE PAST
SEVERAL YEARS, NUMEROUS
DISASTERS IN CALIFORNIA HAVE
DEMONSTRATED THAT ARE MOST
VULNERABLE AND AT RISK
POPULATIONS FEEL THE IMPACTS OF
THESE EVENTS AT A MUCH HIGHER
RATE. ADDRESSING THE IMPACTS AS
ASH WAS HAVING THE MOST
VULNERABLE POPULATIONS HAVE
BECOME A KEY PLANNING AND
PREPAREDNESS EFFORT OUT HERE AT
CALAVIUS AND WAS UTILIZED DURING
THE RESPONSE AND RECOVERY PHASES
OF THIS EVENT. ALL DISASTERS
DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACT ORDER
ADULTS, PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES
AND UNDER REPRESENTATIVE
COMMUNITIES. TO ADDRESS THESE
INEQUITIES. THE KALLIAS OFFICE
OF ACCESS AND FUNCTIONAL NEEDS
WORKS IN COORDINATION WITH OUR
ACTIVITIES OF THE STATE
OPERATIONS CENTER. DARN AND IN
THIS INCIDENT. THE OFFICE OF
ACCESS AND FUNCTIONAL NEEDS AS
TEST WITH IDENTIFYING THE NEEDS
OF ALL CALIFORNIANS AND WORKING
WITH COMMUNITY PARTNERS TO
INTEGRATE THE STATE EMERGENCIES
MANAGEMENT SYSTEM. THE OFFICE OF
ACCIDENTS, ACCESS AND FUNCTION
NEEDS HAVE BEEN ACTIVELY ENGAGED
IN THE RESPONSE OF RECOVERY
EFFORTS. ASSOCIATED WITH THE
STAR WINTER STORMS, INCLUDING
THE FOLLOWING ACTIVITIES,
EMBEDDING IN VARIOUS TESTS
FORCES IN THE OPERATIONS SECTION
OF THE SOCK. ENSURING THE WHOLE
COMMUNITY RECEIVES CRITICALLY
IMPORTANT INFORMATION THROUGHOUT
THE STORM EVENTS TO INCLUDE
ALERT AND WARNING EFFORTS
COORDINATING CENTER FOR
ACCESSIBLE MESSAGING THROUGH THE
JOINT INFORMATION CENTER VIA THE
AMERICAN SIGN. LANGUAGE
CREDENTIAL DISASTER RESPONSE,
INTERPRETER, COORDINATING
TELEPHONIC AND IN PERSON, WORLD
LANGUAGE INTERPRETERS AND
DOCUMENT TRANSLATION SERVICES IN
ALL LANGUAGE AND AMPLIFIED
INFORMATION. REGARDING EMERGENCY
RESPONSE ACTIVITIES WHETHER
ADVISORIES EVACUATION PLANNING
POWER OUTAGE. PERSONAL
PREPARATIONS, STORM SAFETY AND
EMERGENCY SHELTERING. ENGAGING
WITH THE CALLOWAY, A STATEWIDE A
FN COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE
MADE UP OF SEVERAL COMMUNITY
BASED ORGANIZATIONS TO AMPLIFY
MESSAGING, PROVIDE PREPAREDNESS
RESOURCES. AND IDENTIFY UNMET
NEEDS FROM THE RECENT WINTER
STORM DISASTER. WITHIN THE
CALLAWAY'S OFFICE OF DIVERSITY,
EQUITY AND INCLUSION THE LIST OF
PROGRAM PROVIDES A STATEWIDE
NETWORK OF COMMUNITY BASED
ORGANIZATION, TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS
, COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE
TEAMS ACROSS THE STATE TO BOOST
RESILIENCY PROVIDE ACCESSIBLE IN
LANGUAGE INFORMATION AND
ADVANCING NEW CULTURE OF
DISASTER PREPAREDNESS LIST.
THOSE CALIFORNIA STAFF MADE LIVE
CHECK IN CALLS TO GRANTEES TO
INQUIRE ABOUT CONCERNS AND THE
MET NEEDS IN THEIR COMMUNITIES.
DURING THE WINTER STORM EVENT, A
SPECIAL EMPHASIS WAS MADE WAS
WAS FOCUSING ON THE PHONE WORKER
COMMUNITY IN THE 13 MOST
IMPACTFUL COUNTIES. THE LIST
DOES CALIFORNIA WEBSITE WAS
UPDATED WITH VARIOUS HELPFUL
RESOURCES LINKS, INCLUDING
PROVIDING AND THEN JUST LANGUAGE
AND AUDIO MATERIALS. FINALLY THE
LIST OF CALIFORNIA GRANT C
CURRENTLY HELP SUPPORT THE
DISASTER RECOVERY, BUT BY
PROVIDING TRANSLATION SERVICES.
HANDING OUT NEEDED RESOURCES AND
NOTIFYING IMPACT IN COMMUNITIES
AND WHERE TO GO FOR RECOVERY
ASSISTANCE. OFFICE OF DIVERSITY
, EQUITY AND INCLUSION STAFF
ALSO VISIT EVERY DISASTER
RECOVERY CENTER ESTABLISHED
THROUGHOUT THE STATE TO HELP
ACCESS ASSESS THE GAPS AND
CONSIDERATIONS THAT ARE NEEDED.
I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT
TWO TASK FORCES THAT SERVED VERY
IMPORTANT ROLES DURING THE
RESPONSE PHASE OF THIS DISASTER,
THE FIRST BEING THE PRIORITY
POPULATIONS TASK FORCE. THE
PURPOSE OF THIS TEST FORCE WAS
TO COORDINATE ALL STATE
RESOURCES IN SUPPORT OF THE MOST
VULNERABLE CALIFORNIANS IN
RESPONSE TO THE RECENT WINTER
STORMS, DISASTER REPRESENTATIVES
FROM MULTI AGENCIES SAT ON THE
TEST FORCE, INCLUDING
CALIFORNIA'S HEALTH AND HUMAN
SERVICES AGENCY, THE GOVERNOR'S
OFFICE OF EMERGENCY SERVICES,
THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF
SOCIAL SERVICES. CALIFORNIA
DEPARTMENT OF REHABILITATION AND
AMONG MANY OTHERS, THE OBJECTIVE
OF THE PROJECT TASK FOR US OR TO
DEVELOP AND DISSEMINATE
INFORMATION TO LOCAL AND
COMMUNITY PARTNERS RELATED TO
RESOURCES FOR VULNERABLE
INDIVIDUALS. CONVENED LOCAL AND
COUNTY GOVERNMENT PARTNERS TO
PROVIDE REAL TIME AND ON THE
GROUND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
RELATED TO RESOURCE DEPLOYMENT
FOR VULNERABLE INDIVIDUALS
EVALUATE RESOURCE REQUEST
SUBMITTED TO THE SOCK FROM LOCAL
AND COUNTY GOVERNMENTS AND MAKE
RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE SOCK, AND
HE HAD UNIFIED COMMAND GROUP
LEADERSHIP ON THE DEPLOYMENT OF
THOSE RESOURCES. THIS TASK FORCE
IDENTIFIED PRIORITY POPULATIONS
TO INCLUDE PEOPLE WHO ARE
HOMELESS OR UNSHELTERED PEOPLE
WHO ARE OLDER OR MEDICALLY
VULNERABLE. PEOPLE WHO ARE
DISABLED, VISIBLE AND INVISIBLE
AND PEOPLE RESIDING AND
CONGREGATE FACILITIES, MEDICAL
AND NON MEDICAL THE TASK FORCE
DEVELOPED AND DISSEMINATED
INFORMATION TO LOCAL AND
COMMUNITY PARTNERS RELATED TO
THE FORTHCOMING WHETHER
CONDITIONS ARE PROVIDED
INFORMATION REGARDING EXISTENCE
, STATE AND FEDERAL RESOURCES
FOR PRIORITY POPULATIONS,
ANOTHER CRITICAL TASK FORCE THAT
WAS STOOD UP IN SUPPORT OF OUR
WINTER STORMS RESPONSE WAS THE
ADVANCED PLANNING TEST FOR US.
THE ADVANCE PLANNING TASK FORCE
WAS DEVELOPED TO BRING
MANAGEMENT LEVEL REPRESENTATIVES
FROM STATE AGENCIES TOGETHER TO
ASSESS POTENTIAL IMPACTS.
COORDINATE THE PREPOSITION OF
RESOURCES IN ADVANCE OF THE
APPROACHING STORM SYSTEMS THAT
WERE FORECAST TO IMPACT THE
STATE. IN THE DAYS LEADING UP TO
THE SERIES OF ATMOSPHERIC
RIVERS. THE ADVANCE PLANNING FOR
US IDENTIFIED HIGH PRIORITY
AREAS. ONCE A HIGH PRIORITY
AREAS IDENTIFIED TASK FORCE
AGENCY REPRESENTATIVES
DETERMINED THE TYPE AND NUMBER
OF RESOURCES NEEDED TO
PREPOSITION AS NEEDED. ONCE
RESOURCES AND ASSETS WERE
IDENTIFIED. AGENCY
REPRESENTATIVES WORK THROUGH
THEIR DEPARTMENT OF OPERATIONS
CENTER AND OUR TASK FORCES TO
MISSION TASK OR DEPLOYED. THERE
WAS IDENTIFIED CASSETTES. AS
ADDITIONAL HIGH PRIORITY AREAS
WERE IDENTIFIED THE TEST FORCE
ASSESS THE NEEDS EMISSION TASKS
RESOURCES APPROPRIATELY.
THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS. I KEEP
PLAYING A FACTOR INTO THE
EFFORTS WITH THE POTENTIAL
IMPACT OF VULNERABLE AND AT RISK
POPULATIONS INTERWOVEN. AS WE
CONTINUE TO MOVE INTO THE
RECOVERY PHASE OF THIS DISASTER
IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT
THIS IS A LONG PROCESS. AND WE
HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO FOR OUR
SURVIVORS TO RETURN TO A SENSE
OF NORMALCY. HOWEVER AS WE
ALWAYS DO, WE WOULD TAKE WHAT WE
LEARNED AND APPROVE OUR PLANNING
AND PREPAREDNESS TO MITIGATE THE
IMPACTS. A FUTURE EVENTS. IN THE
NEXT TWO MONTHS. THE LATEST
REVISION OF THE STATE OF
CALIFORNIA EMERGENCY PLAN WILL
GO OUT FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. THIS
PLAN SETS UP CALIFORNIA'S
FRAMEWORK FOR EMERGENCY RESPONSE
, INCLUDING STATE AGENCY LED
EMERGENCY SUPPORT FUNCTIONS. IN
RESPONSE AGENCY
RESPONSIBILITIES. IT'S 2018
FOLLOWING THE PRIOR YEAR, SEVERE
WINTER STORMS AND THE ARRIVAL
EMERGENCY SPILLWAY INCIDENT.
CALORIES INSTITUTED PURSUANT TO
LEGISLATION. REQUIREMENT ON OUR
EXTREMELY HIGH HIGH AND
SIGNIFICANTLY SIGNIFICANT HAZARD
CLASSIFICATION DAM OWNERS TO
PREPARE EMERGENCY ACTION PLANS
THAT, AMONG OTHER THINGS,
FACILITATE COMMUNICATION WITH
ALL DOWNSTREAM PUBLIC SAFETY
AGENCIES AND OTHER KEY PARTNERS
DURING A PRIORITY OF INCIDENT.
SCENARIOS SEVERAL OF THESE E A P
S OR ACTIVATED DURING THIS
RECENT STORM. IN 2017 AND 18,
THE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
CATASTROPHIC FLOOD RESPONSE
PLAN. WAS DEVELOPED IN BASED ON
A FLOOD SCENARIO IN SAN JOAQUIN.
VALLEY BUT WAS VERY INFORMATIVE
DURING THE RECENT STORMS. AFTER
THE FLOOD OF 1996 97. HE HAS
CREATED A SERIES OF FLOOD
EMERGENCY ACTION TEAM REPORTS.
WHICH WE KNOW LOCAL
JURISDICTIONS USED REGULARLY,
AND WE HAVE CURRENTLY WE ARE
CURRENTLY IN THE PROCESS OF
UPDATING, REVISING AND REIMAGINE
REIMAGINE AND THOSE AND THE 2020
EMERGENCY PLANNING BEST
PRACTICES FOR COUNTIES DOCUMENT
WHICH WAS PREPARED FOR PURSUANT
TO LEGISLATION AUTHORED BY
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S RODRIGUEZ IS A
LIVING DOCUMENT INFORMED BY
AFTER ACTION REPORTS, INCLUDING
THE ONES CREATED FOR THIS LAST
FLOODING EVENT. OUR COMMUNITY. I
MEAN, OUR COMMUNITY PLANNING
UNIT IN OFFICE OF ACCESS AND
FUNCTION NEEDS ARE SPECIFICALLY
GLEANED BEST PRACTICES FROM A OR
STATEWIDE FOR ADDRESSING NEEDS
OF VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES,
HOUSEHOLDS AND INDIVIDUALS FOR
INCLUSION IN THERE. BEST
PRACTICE GUIDANCE ONCE AGAIN.
THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO
SPEAK TODAY, AND I'M AVAILABLE
FOR ANY QUESTIONS AFTER THAT.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR INPUT. NEXT
WE GO TO OUR DWR, DEPUTY
DIRECTOR FOR SECURITY AND
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT. JOHN PASH,
DEPUTY DIRECTOR, YOU MAY BEGIN.
THANK YOU. CHAIR RODRIGUEZ,
CHERRY GARCIA. MY NAME IS JOHN
PASSION. I AM THE DEPUTY
DIRECTOR OF THE DEPARTMENT OF
WATER RESOURCES SECURITY AND
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM.
OUR MISSION AT THE DEPARTMENT IS
THE SUSTAINABLY MANAGE WATER
RESOURCES OF CALIFORNIA AND
COOPERATION WITH OTHER AGENCIES
TO BENEFIT THE STATES. PEOPLE
AND PROTECT, RESTORE AND ENHANCE
THE NATURAL AND HUMAN
ENVIRONMENTS. I THANK YOU FOR
THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TODAY.
AND DESCRIBE THE DEPARTMENT OF
WATER RESOURCES ACTIONS TO
PREPARE ALERT. AND PROTECT
COMMUNITIES DURING EXTREME
WEATHER EVENTS. SPECIFICALLY
THOSE DONE IN CLOSE COORDINATION
WITH LOCAL, STATE AND FEDERAL
PARTNERS THIS PAST MONTH. DWR
ACTIVATED THE DEPARTMENT
OPERATIONS CENTER TO COORDINATE
INFORMATION AND RESOURCES ACROSS
OUR DEPARTMENT AND IN SUPPORT OF
THE EMERGENCY OPERATION CENTERS
FOR THE STATE WATER PROJECT. OUR
DIVISION OF SAFETY OF DAMS AND
THE STATE FEDERAL FLOOD
OPERATIONS CENTER. LET'S PUT 251
PEOPLE IN PLAY TO THE SPORT TO
SUPPORT DWR S RESPONSE IN
VARIOUS WAYS AND FOCUS THROUGH
OUR FLOOD OPERATION CENTERS AND
THE AND THE STATE OPERATIONS
CENTER. THE FLOOD OPERATIONS
CENTER IS CO LOCATED IN
SACRAMENTO WITH IT WITH THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE,
CALIFORNIA NEVADA RIVER FORECAST
CENTER, THE SACRAMENTO WEATHER
FORECAST OFFICE AS WELL AS OUR
STATE WATER PROJECT AND THE U. S
BUREAU OF RECLAMATION CENTER
VALLEY PROJECT, SEPARATE THE
SENSOR VALUE FOOT PROTECTION
BOARD AND THE CALIFORNIA DATA
EXCHANGE CENTER. IT OPERATES IN
CLOSE PARTNERSHIP. WITH THE ARMY
ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS AND
CALLOW YES, WHO BOTH HAD AGENCY
REPRESENTS REPS ON SITE. AND
THESE PARTNERSHIPS MAKE THE F O.
C HUB OF STATEWIDE REAL TIME
FLIGHT OPERATIONS AND WATER
MANAGEMENT DURING EXTREME
EVENTS. DWR S BENCH OF TECHNICAL
EXPERTISE BENEFITS LOCAL
COMMUNITIES BY PROVIDING
TECHNICAL AND DIRECT ASSISTANCE
AND VARIOUS WARMS. ONE IS FLOOD
INFORMATION SPECIALIST WHO ARE
ON SITE IN COUNTY EMERGENCY
OPERATIONS CENTERS, THEIR DATA
EXPERTS CONNECTING COUNTIES TO
POSTED HYDROLOGIC INFORMATION
AND FORECASTS AND RELAYING
INCIDENT INFORMATION TO THE
STATE. ALSO HAVE FLOOD FIGHT
SPECIALIST WHO ARE ON SCENE
WITHIN COUNTIES ASSESSING REAL
TIME CONDITIONS ALONGSIDE LOCAL
FLOOD MANAGERS ADVISING ON FLOOD
FIGHT MEASURES AND SHARING
INCIDENT INFORMATION. AND WHEN
AN INCIDENT ESCALATES, AN
INCIDENT COMMAND TEAM CAN BE
BROUGHT IN TO SUPPORT LOCAL
RESPONDERS. WE ALSO HAVE FLED
FIGHT MATERIALS THAT WERE
DEPLOYED. THESE ARE SUPPLIES
THAT WERE PRE POSITIONED AT 41
LOCATIONS ACROSS THE STATE. AND
AT THE END OF THE EVENT WE'VE
DEPLOYED OVER 900,000 SANDBAGS
3000 LINEAR FEET OF MUSCLE WALL
300 ROLLS OF PLASTIC SHEET 300
ROLLS OF PLASTIC SHEETING, THE
LOCAL PUBLIC AGENCIES INTENT
BEING TO PROTECT PUBLIC
INFRASTRUCTURE, MRS DONALD ALL
DONE IN COOPERATION WITH OTHER
STATE, FEDERAL AND LOCAL
PARTNERS. AS MENTIONED. WE ALSO
PARTICIPATED AT THE STATE
OPERATIONS CENTER IN THE
ADVANCED PLANNING TAX TASK FORCE
. IN ADDITION TO THE D W Y REPS
AT THE SOCK, WE HAD EXPERTS ON
DAM SAFETY, FLOOD SYSTEMS AND
HYDROLOGY WHO WERE EMBEDDED AT
THE SOCK WITH OTHER SUPPORTING
DEPARTMENTS TO SUPPORT THE
ADVANCED PLANNING AND MISSION.
CRITICAL STATE STAGING OF
RESOURCES AHEAD OF TIME. UM. 53
INCIDENTS REPORTED TO THE FLOOD
OPERATIONS CENTER FROM 14
COUNTIES, 38 OF WHICH WERE
VISITED BY DWR FLOOD FIGHT
SPECIALISTS, BUT I WANT TO NOTE
THAT NOT ALL INCIDENTS ARE
REPORTED TO THE F O C OR THE
STATE. MANY FLOOD THREATS ARE
DISCOVERED AND ADDRESSED AT THE
LOCAL LEVEL AND HANDLE HIM
HANDLED AT THE LOCAL LEVEL. UH
NOT TO SPEAK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT
OUR ACTIONS BEFORE AN EXTREME
EVENT OCCURS DWR, PRIMARILY
THROUGH OUR DIVISION OF FLOOD
MANAGEMENT TAKES ACTION YEAR
ROUND TO PREPARE COMMUNITIES FOR
FLOODING. WE ADMINISTER THE
NATIONAL FOOT INSURANCE PROGRAM
, WHICH INCLUDES COMMUNITY
ASSISTANCE, VISITS AND
DISCUSSIONS WITH LOCAL FOOD
MANAGERS ON RISK REDUCTION
MEASURES. ALSO, UM. PROMOTE, UM
SORRY I LOST MY PLACE HERE. WE
ALSO PROMOTE LOCAL FLOOD
EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS AND LOCAL
AND BUILD OPERATIONAL CAPACITY
THROUGH FLOOD ER GRANTS, AS WAS
MENTIONED FROM SACRAMENTO
COUNTY, PROVIDING FUNDING AND
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO LOCAL
AGENCIES, CITIES AND COUNTIES TO
DEVELOP AN UPDATE EMERGENCY
PLANS EARNING WARNING EARLY
WARNING SYSTEMS TO CONDUCT
TRAINING AND EXERCISES AND TO
PURCHASE MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT
NEEDED TO INITIATE THE CONDUCT
LOCAL FLOOD FIGHTS. WE LEAD AND
CONDUCT PRESEASON FLOOD
COORDINATION MEETINGS WITH
SUPPORT FROM CALLOWAY. YES, THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE, THE
CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS,
CALIF. IRON THE ARMY CORPS OF
ENGINEERS, COUNTY EMERGENCY
MANAGERS AND LOCAL FLOOD
MANAGERS. THIS IS A VENUE TO
SHARE LOCAL CONCERNS, REITERATE
RULES AND PROCEDURES AND TO
CONNECT WITH PUBLIC PARTNERS
THAT ARE INTEGRAL TO PROTECTING
COMMUNITIES. WE ALSO PROVIDE
FLOOD PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION IN
THE FORM OF SYSTEM WIDE SMALL
COMMUNITIES IN SUCH PROJECTS,
THE CENTRAL VALLEY TRIBUTARIES
PROGRAM AND MULTI BENEFIT
PROJECTS. THIS INJECTS STATE
FUNDING AND EXPERTISE TO
IMPLEMENT PHYSICAL STRUCTURAL
IMPROVEMENTS, INCLUDING NATURE
BASED SOLUTIONS, ALL TO REDUCE
RISK. TO CONCLUDE MY REMARKS. I
WANT TO THANK THE MANY AGENCIES
AND INDIVIDUALS WHO CONTRIBUTED
TO THE RESPONSE DURING THE EVENT
AND LEAVE YOU WITH MY
DEPARTMENT'S MOTIVATION AND
COMMITMENT TO CONTINUE TO
SUPPORT OUR COMMUNITIES TO BRING
OUR EXPERTISE TO BEAR BEFORE AND
DURING WEATHER EVENTS. THANK
YOU. THANK YOU FOR THE
PRESENTATION AND NOW MOVE ON TO
OUR LAST WITNESS SO THAT THE
PANEL IS ACTING GENERAL OF THE
CALIFORNIA MILITARY DEPARTMENT.
MAJOR GENERAL MATTHEW BEEVERS,
MAJOR GENERAL BEAVERS. YOU MAY
BEGIN. THANK YOU. AFTERNOON
MEMBERS STARTING ON THE 31ST OF
DECEMBER, INCLUDING ON THE 24TH
OF JANUARY, WE DEPLOYED TWO
DIFFERENT TASK FORCES ONE
AVIATION OF ONE GROUND TASK
FORCE. THE GROUND TASK FORCE
CONSISTS OF TWO WHAT WE CALL
CONSEQUENCE MANAGEMENT COMPANIES
AND ENGINEERING COMPANY AND A
MILITARY POLICE COMPANY. OUR
AVIATION ASSETS CONSIST OF FIVE
AIRCRAFT THAT BEING SEARCH AND
RESCUE AND HEAVY LIFT THOSE TWO
TASK FORCES PROBABLY INCLUDED
ABOUT 505 150 OR SO SOLDIERS AND
AIRMEN. I WANT TO TALK JUST
BRIEFLY ABOUT A COUPLE OF
EXAMPLES OF HOW WE DEPLOYED
THOSE TWO TASK FORCES ACROSS THE
STATE. SO 40 HIGH WATER VEHICLES
WERE DEPLOYED FROM AS FAR NORTH
AS EUREKA TO SOUTH OF A SANTA
BARBARA, AND THEY PARTICIPATED
IN A NUMBER OF RESCUES. PROBABLY
THE ONE YOU MIGHT REMEMBER. IS
THAT THE CAMPO PRIORITY
POPULATION THERE ABOUT 200
RESIDENTS IN A TRAILER PARK
COMPLETELY SURROUNDED IN WATER.
UH MY FOLKS WORKING WITH THE
LOCALS WERE ABLE TO RESCUE EACH
ONE OF THOSE RESIDENTS AND GET
THEM OUT TO SAFETY. ANOTHER
EXAMPLE. THIS IS DOWN IN
MONTECITO, AND IT WAS OUR OUR
AVIATION TASK FORCE. OR RATHER,
IT WAS ANOTHER GROUND TASK FORCE
. IT WAS THE SIXTH 40TH ENGINEER
COMPANY OUT OF CHICO THEY
DEPLOYED FROM THEIR HOME STATION
IN CHICO. GOT DOWN TO MONTECITO
IN 36 HOURS SAFELY. AND WE'RE
ABLE TO REDUCE THE DEBRIS BASIN
AT THE SANTA CATHEDRAL RIVER
THERE ON RANDALL ROAD IN
MONTECITO, AND THEY REDUCED THAT
DEBRIS BASE AND TAKING OUT I
THINK 15,000 CUBIC YARDS OF
DEBRIS AND THAT ENSURED THAT WE
DID NOT HAVE A REPEAT OF WHAT
OCCURRED THERE AND IN 2018 WITH
THE TRAGEDY WITH ALL THOSE LIVES
THAT WERE LOST EXAMPLE OF OUR
AVIATION RESOURCES THAT WE
EMPLOYED. WAS THAT A LEVEE
BREACH IN THE BEAR CREEK AREA
MERCED ALONG FRANKLIN BOULEVARD
AND ARE HEAVY LIFT AIRCRAFT WERE
ABLE TO TAKE BIG TESCO BARRIERS
IF YOU WILL OFF THE GROUND, FLY
THEM INTO THE BREACH, AND THEY
CONCLUDED THAT OPERATION ABOUT
NINE O'CLOCK ONE NIGHT, SO THE
LAST PART OF THEIR FLIGHT
OPERATIONS THEY FLUID UNDER
NIGHT VISION GOGGLES TO ENSURE
THAT THE BREACH WAS WAS WAS WAS
WAS CLEAR. I GUESS. FINALLY I
JUST MENTIONED I WANNA TALK A
LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT RYAN
DISCUSSED RELATIVE TO ADVANCE
PLANNING AND THE STATE'S
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM. SO
IN THIS IN THIS FLOOD FIGHT I
THOUGHT WAS EXTRAORDINARY WAS
THEIR ABILITY OF THE STATE'S
ABILITY TO TAKE PREDICTIVE TOOLS
, EARLY WARNING TOOLS AND BRING
THAT INTO AN ADVANCED PLANNING
CELL AND THEN MAKE PREDICTIONS
ON WHERE EQUIPMENT NEEDED TO GO
AHEAD OF THE EMERGENCY AND THAT
OCCURRED ACROSS THIS ENTIRE
FLOOD FIGHT AND THAT THAT SHOULD
NOT BE OVERSTATED. THAT WAS
IMPRESSIVE, AND THEN FINALLY
MADE A MENTIONED EARLIER ABOUT
THE STATE'S EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
SYSTEM. THAT IS NOT ONLY THE
GOLD STANDARD OF CALIFORNIA OR
COUNTRY THAT IS THE GOLD
STANDARD. GLOBALLY WE DO, NOBODY
DOES IT BETTER. NOBODY DOES IT
BETTER THAN THE STATE OF
CALIFORNIA, AND UNFORTUNATELY,
WE HAVE A LOT OF PRACTICE AT, UM
, BUT THAT SYSTEMS THAT ARE SET
UP TO ENSURE THAT WE PUT THE
RIGHT PIECE OF EQUIPMENT AT THE
RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME TO
GET THE DESIRED EFFECT THAT WE
WANT. THAT THAT IS CRITICAL, AND
WE DO IT BETTER THAN ANYBODY
ELSE. WELL, THANK YOU. REALLY
THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I THINK EVERYBODY THAT IN THE
SECOND PANEL WAS A LARGE PANEL.
A LOT OF INFORMATION. I THINK
NOT JUST OUR FIRST RESPONDERS,
BUT IT TOOK US DOWN TO THE LOCAL
LEVEL COMMUNITIES AND OTHER
RESPONSE AND EVERY AREA WAS
IMPACTED DIFFERENTLY THAN
OTHERS, RIGHT DEPENDING ON THE
SIZE, THEIR JURISDICTION ROAR
URBAN SETTINGS. UM I HAVE A LOT
TO SAY. I'M TRYING TO NARROW
DOWN MY THOUGHTS. BUT I'M GOING
TO OPEN UP TO ANY MEMBERS OF THE
COMMITTEE WANT TO GO? 1ST MAY
HAVE SOMETHING SOMEBODY'S CHILD
AND GO AHEAD. THANK YOU. THANK
YOU, MR CHAIR. UM SO EXCUSE ME,
UM. AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR
THE INFORMATION TODAY. IT'S
INCREDIBLY HELPFUL. AND UM, AND
JUST FOR THE WORK THAT YOU'VE
BEEN DOING, I KNOW WORKING IN
DISASTERS IS NOT AN EASY JOB. UM
AND YOU KNOW, SO I'VE JUST BEEN
THINKING A LOT ABOUT HOW IN THE
LAST FEW YEARS AND YOU KNOW
CURRENTLY AND IN THE IMMEDIATE
FUTURE, REALLY? WE'RE MAKING
HISTORIC INVESTMENTS IN
INFRASTRUCTURE. UM AND THE WAYS
IN WHICH WE CAN MAKE SURE THAT
THOSE INVESTMENTS INTO DISASTER
MITIGATION. UTILITY
INFRASTRUCTURE AND OTHER CAPITAL
PROJECTS. HOW WE CAN MAKE SURE
THAT THESE INVESTMENTS THAT ARE
HAPPENING NOW ARE REALLY GOING
TO SET US UP WHERE WE NEED TO BE
IN THE FUTURE. UM ESPECIALLY, I
THINK, AND MAYBE YOU WANT TO
TAKE A FIRST SHOT AT THIS, MR
PASH, BUT, YOU KNOW, STUDYING US
UP FOR, UM MORE EFFECTIVELY
PREVENTING FLOOD CAPTURING THAT
WATER. MANAGEMENT OF THAT WATER
. UM EFFECTIVELY SO THAT YOU
KNOW, LIKE WE WERE TALKING ABOUT
THE PLANNED RELEASES AND THINGS
LIKE THAT, UM, THAT WILL MAKE A
BIG DIFFERENCE TO PREVENT
FLOODING AND ALSO RECHARGE
GROUNDWATER AND ALL OF THE OTHER
THINGS THAT WE NEED TO BE DOING
RIGHT THAT THAT DUAL
COORDINATION UM SO ARE THERE. IS
THERE STRATEGIC PLANNING THAT'S
HAPPENING RIGHT NOW AROUND THESE
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS WITH
AGENCIES? UM AND HOW CAN WE
ENSURE THAT THESE INVESTMENTS
ARE TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION
CLIMATE RESILIENCE AND IN THAT
THOSE INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS
YEAH. THANK YOU FOR THAT
QUESTION THAT THERE THAT'S
DEFINITELY AT THE FOREFRONT OF
OUR THINKING OUR STRATEGIC
PLANNING ACROSS THE WITHIN OUR
DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES,
AND WE'RE NOT. WE'RE NOT DOING
THAT ALONE. THAT'S IN
COORDINATION WITH WITH THE
GOVERNOR'S OFFICE AT THE AGENCY
LEVEL WITH OUR SISTER
DEPARTMENTS WITHIN OUR AGENCY,
UM IT ALL TIES TOGETHER. IT
TRULY IS INTEGRATED AND IT NEEDS
TO BE CODED. IT IS. IT NEEDS TO
BE CONTINUE TO BE CO MANAGED, I
THINK WAS THE TERM USED THERE'S
THE SOLUTIONS THERE. THERE'S NO
ONE SOLUTION TO ONE PROBLEM. THE
SOLUTIONS AFTER YOU KNOW, SOLVE
MULTIPLE PROBLEMS AND WHEN WE
TALK ABOUT THE MULTI BENEFIT
PROJECTS, LET ME SETBACKS,
LEADING MORE ROOM NATURE BASED
SOLUTIONS MORE ROOM FOR THE
WATER TO FLOW BECAUSE YOU KNOW
WHEN THE SCENARIOS THAT ARE
PRESENTED BEFORE US AND IN THE
FIRST PANEL, UH THERE'S NOT A
LEVEE SYSTEM YOU'RE GONNA
CONSTRUCT THAT'S GONNA THAT CAN
CONTAIN ALL THAT WATER AND, YOU
KNOW. AND SO YEAH, THAT'S THAT'S
THAT'S THE THAT THAT'S THE
CHALLENGE AND SO AND THAT IT'S
GREAT WORKING WITH THIS GROUP
HERE BECAUSE THERE. THERE'S A
LIFE SAFETY ELEMENT TO THIS AND
THE EVACUATION, THE MASCARA IN
SHELTER AND THAT KIND OF A
SCENARIO IS GOING TO BE YOU KNOW
IT'S GOING TO BE KEY TO
PROTECTING LIVES AND KEEPING
THOSE, UM KEEPING THOSE
FATALITIES DOWN. AND, UM. BUT
JUST WE AS A DEPARTMENT WHERE
WE'RE STILL FULLY IN INTO INTO
DROUGHT MODE. I MEAN, WELL, A
LOT OF AREAS IN THE STATE
RECEIVED A LOT OF PRECEPT AND
YOU KNOW THAT THEY'RE DROUGHT
CONDITIONS THAT MAY BE LESS AND
THERE'S OTHER PARTS OF THE STATE
THAT THAT DIDN'T SEE THAT THAT
INFLOW OF WATER. I MEAN, THERE'S
STILL RESERVOIRS UP NORTH
SHASTA, THE LARGEST RESERVOIR,
THE STATE'S NOT AS FULL AS A LOT
OF THE RESERVOIRS IN THE IN THE
CENTRAL CALIFORNIA AND IN THE
CENTRAL COUNCIL. UM BEING ABLE
TO MANAGE THE WATER AS WELL AS
WE RECEIVE IT FOR MULTIPLE
BENEFITS FOR FLOOD PROTECTION
FOR GROUNDWATER RECHARGE TO HELP
US MAKE MORE PROGRESS AND
REMEDIATING THE IMPACTS OF THE
DROUGHT. THERE'S THAT THAT'S
THAT'S THE EXPECTATION THAT WE
HAVE, AND WE AND WE AND WE NEED
TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT. GREAT.
SAID. THE FINER POINTS OF THAT,
UM UM, FIRST OFF, THANKS AND YOU
KNOW, HERE AT OH, YES, WE DO.
MANAGE THE MITIGATION, FEDERAL
DOLLARS WE DID RECENTLY SUBMIT
TO AQUIFERS PROJECTS TO DO JUST
THIS, AND THEY WERE AGREED UPON
BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO BE
LOOKED AT. SO THAT'S A HUGE PLUS
AND AS FAR AS HOW WE BUY DOWN
RISK. THAT IS SOMETHING WE
ABSOLUTELY DO. WE LOOK AT WHEN
WE GET THESE APPLICATIONS AND,
UH THROUGHOUT STATEWIDE NORTH
SOUTH, AND IT HAS TO BE ALL
HAZARDS. TWO. IF YOU JUST THINK,
JUST LAST OCTOBER WE HAD
HURRICANE WE HAD A FIRE ORDERS.
HURRICANE K. AND THEN WE HAD
MUDSLIDES WITHIN, LIKE A WEEK
PERIOD. AND THIS IS ALL HAZARD
STATE. I MEAN, WHEN WE START
SAYING HURRICANE AND TORNADO
WITHIN TWO MONTHS, UH, WE? IT'S
A PROBLEM THAT WE'RE ADDRESSING.
IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE LOOK AT.
WE CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO GET MORE
DOLLARS IN WITH THE HAZARD
MITIGATION. WE WORK WITH OUR
LOCAL PARTNERS TO ENSURE THAT
THEY HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO GET
THAT MONEY. AND AS I MENTIONED
BEFORE WE HAVE THE STATE HAS
MITIGATION PLAN WILL BE
AVAILABLE FOR COMMENT NEXT WEEK.
AND WHAT THAT DOES IT
IDENTIFIES? THE AREAS THAT
STATEWIDE, UH ARE AT RISK AND
HOW WE SHOULD MITIGATE. AND THEN
THE LOCAL HAS MITIGATION PLAN,
UH, THAT THE LOCALS CAN GENERATE
CAN USE THAT STATE PLAN AS AS A
STRONG REFERENCE AND WE WILL
SUPPORT THEM RIGHT IN THOSE
PLANS. AND IF I COULD GET A
GREAT EXAMPLE OF THE MITIGATION
THAT MR BURRIS JUST MENTIONED,
UM AND THAT, UM, THE MAJOR
GENERAL TALKED ABOUT THAT
RANDALL ROAD BASIN POST
MONTECITO DEBRIS FLOW. FIVE
YEARS AGO, WE WERE ABLE TO GET
HAZARD MITIGATION GRANT FUNDING
AS A COUNTY FOR THAT WE HAD TO
BUY OUT EIGHT MONTECITO HOMES
THAT TOOK MANY, MANY YEARS TO
TALK TO THOSE HOMEOWNERS AND
CONVINCE THEM OF THE BENEFITS OF
THIS CONCEPT. ONE HOME WAS
ACTUALLY PICKED UP IN ITS
ENTIRETY MOVED ACROSS THE STREET
INTO A SAFER LOCATION. UM YOU
KNOW EXAMPLE, 11 HOME WAS $4
MILLION, AND WE HAD TO BUY OUT
EIGHT OF THOSE, AND THEN THAT
DOES NOT INCLUDE THE ACTUAL COST
OF THE CONSTRUCTION AND
IMPROVEMENTS. THE MITIGATION
IMPROVEMENTS IN THAT BASIN. SO
THE CONCEPT OF CO MANAGING AND
CLIMATE RESILIENCE AND
INFRASTRUCTURE IS AN AMAZING AND
WONDERFUL CONCEPT. IT'S ALSO
VERY EXPENSIVE ONE AND SO THEY
CONTINUED INVESTMENT INTO HAZARD
MITIGATION FUNDS THAT CONTINUED
INVESTMENT INTO, UM, JOINT
ENGINEERING. AND UM, PROBLEM
SOLVING WE, YOU KNOW, I KNOW.
DAVID TALKED ABOUT IN SANTA CRUZ
AND I HAD THE SAME ISSUE WITHIN
. KELSEY HAS THE SAME ISSUE WITH
COASTAL, UM, FLOODING AND
CONCEPTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE IS
GOING TO CONTINUE TO ENHANCE
THAT. IT IS VERY POLITICALLY
CHALLENGING TO CHANGE. COASTAL
UM PERMITTING AND PLANNING
CONCEPTS TO REFLECT THESE
CONCEPTS OF CLIMATE RESILIENCE,
AND IT'S UM DIFFICULT AND AGAIN
, COSTLY AS WE DO THOSE, AND SO
JUST KEEPING THOSE FACTORS IN
MIND. THOSE ARE CONCEPTS WE'RE
ALL LOOKING AT. UM AND SOME OF
THE HURDLES WE HAVE WITH THOSE
MR CHAIR IF I COULD ADD, PLEASE
. UM I KNOW YOU'RE LOOKING AT
INFRASTRUCTURE IN A GRAND OR
LARGER, STATEWIDE CONCEPT, BUT I
ALSO WANTED TO BRING YOUR
ATTENTION TO THE FACT THAT THESE
STORMS ARE NOT NECESSARILY OVER
. THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF OUR
WATER YEAR. WE ARE LOOKING FOR
MORE. WE HAVE A TREMENDOUSLY
LARGE SNOWPACK, THANKFULLY. BUT
IF WE GET A WARM SYSTEM ON TOP
OF THAT SNOW PACK, WE'RE LOOKING
AT IMPACTS DOWNSTREAM FROM THAT
AGAIN. BUT WHAT I WANT TO BRING
YOUR ATTENTION TO AT THE LOCAL
LEVEL REGARDING INFRASTRUCTURE
IS THE DAMAGE AND IMPACT TO
ROADS. THOSE RURAL ROADS THAT
MOVE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS THAT
ARE OUR EVACUATION CORRIDORS.
THOSE HAVE ALL BEEN
SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED IN THESE
STORMS, NOT ONLY FROM WATER BUT
FROM THE ROCK. THANKFULLY THANK
YOU THAT HAS BEEN MOVING ACROSS
THESE ROADS TO TRY AND PATCH
LEVEE SYSTEMS. UM THOUSANDS OF
TONS OF ROCK HAVE MOVED ACROSS
THESE ROADS ACROSS CALIFORNIA. I
DON'T EVEN KNOW THE ENTIRE
AMOUNT. UM BUT THAT HAS DONE
JUST AS MUCH DAMAGE TO THE ROADS
AND UNDERMINES THOSE ROADS THAT
ARE THOSE CRITICAL EVACUATION
CORRIDORS, SOME OF WHICH WENT
UNDERWATER IN OUR COUNTY IN
SACRAMENTO. UM AND SO I JUST
WANTED TO BRING THAT TO YOUR
ATTENTION THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.
THIS PARTICULAR STORM SYSTEM IS
BEING OVER. BUT WE STILL HAVE
THE REST OF OUR WATER YEAR TO
KIND OF COLLECT THAT THAT
REMAINING WATER, SO WE'RE
PLANNING AND LOOKING FORWARD FOR
THOSE EVENTUALITIES. BUT THOSE
IMPACTS ARE REAL FOR OUR LOCAL
COMMUNITIES AND RESIDENTS. AND
GOING BACK TO KELSEY'S COMMENT
EARLIER ABOUT PRIVATE ROADS WERE
ALSO A PRIVATE ISSUE AND
INFRASTRUCTURE. WE HAVE PRIVATE
UM COMMUNITY MEMBERS, PRIVATE
LAND THAT WE CAN'T GO INTO HIS
GOVERNMENT, BUT IMPACTS OUR LIFE
SAFETY FOR OTHER RESIDENTS AND
LIFE SAFETY FOR OUR RESPONDERS
WHO HAVE TO GO IN WHEN THINGS DO
OCCUR IN SEVERAL INVESTING IN
THAT, UM, CONCEPT OF MITIGATION
IN PRIVATE LANDS, BOTH BUSINESS
AND, UM, HOMEOWNERS CAN HELP US
WITH THAT OVERALL CONCEPT OF
IMPACTS TO OUR OVERALL CRITICAL
INFRASTRUCTURE AND OUR
COMMUNITIES. YEAH I THINK TO
JUST ADD ON TO WHAT MY
COLLEAGUES HAVE ALREADY SAID, IS
THAT THE COMPLEXITIES OF PRIVATE
PROPERTY OWNERSHIP ALONG OUR
WATERWAYS HAS REALLY LIMITED US.
BUT ALSO, AS KELLY JUST
MENTIONED INCREASES THE RISK. SO
WE HAVE A LOT OF WHAT DO YOU
FLOOD DEBRIS IN OUR WATERWAYS ON
PRIVATE PROPERTY, AND WHILE
THEY'RE NOT AN IMMEDIATE THREAT
TO HEALTH AND SAFETY OR ANY
RESIDENTIAL STRUCTURE, THEY DO
CREATE SOMEWHAT OF A DAMMING
EFFECT FOR FUTURE FLOODING, AND
IT'S ONLY JANUARY, UM AND A LOT
OF THAT WON'T BE ABLE TO BE
REMOVED BY THE PROPERTY OWNERS
UNTIL LATE IN THE SUMMER, JUST
DUE TO ACCESS UM AND KELLY HAD
ALREADY MENTIONED WE CANNOT
ACCESS THE PRIVATE PROPERTIES.
THERE ARE NO PROGRAMS FOR
ACCESSING WATERWAYS. UM THAT
DON'T REQUIRE AN EXHAUSTIVE
AMOUNT OF PERMITTING TO REMOVE
THAT DEBRIS. UM SO IT'S UM IT'S
REALLY COMPLEX PROBLEM, AND NONE
OF US REALLY KNOW HOW TO ADDRESS
IT, AND THERE AREN'T REALLY
ESTABLISHED PROGRAMS OR POLICIES
FOR ADDRESSING THAT KIND OF
EMERGENCY WORK. THANK YOU. I AM
. I THINK I MAY HAVE BEEN THE
ONLY ONE WITH THE HONOR OF BEING
ON ALL THREE COMMITTEES THAT ARE
JOINTLY CONVENED HERE TODAY. SO
I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH
YOU ALL ON ADDRESSING THESE
CONCERNS, AND I KNOW HOW
IMPORTANT IT IS FOR OUR
COMMUNITIES. THANK YOU JUST
PROBABLY TRY TO NARROW DOWN THE
TWO QUESTIONS HERE. UM BEING THE
FACT THAT THESE STORMS CAME
PRETTY MUCH SIMULTANEOUS BACK TO
BACK RIGHT. AND I THINK POLLY
IMPACTED IS PROBABLY WORSE THAN
WE ANTICIPATED. SO WOULD BE KIND
OF FAIR TO SAY WITH SOME
DEPARTMENTS OR AGENCIES THAT
WERE KIND OF CAUGHT OFF GUARD
BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T HAD THIS
SIGNIFICANT ARRANGED IN
CENTURIES. I GUESS AS WE'RE
TALKING ABOUT, THINGS ARE GONNA
GET HOTTER AND WETTER. THAT AS
THIS STORM CAME IN, IN A SENSE,
WOW, IT'S REALLY MORE SEVERE
THAN EVER. AND WE WEREN'T REALLY
PREPARED ENOUGH. WHAT WHAT ARE
LESSONS LEARNED FROM THIS MOVING
FORWARD BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY, IT
TAKES TIME. IT TAKES MONEY AND
EVERYTHING PLANNING, BUT BUT
WHAT DO WE LEARN FROM THIS AND
WHERE WE KIND OF CUT OFF GUARD A
LITTLE BIT BY THIS SCENARIO,
BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T HAD SOMETHING
LIKE THIS IN YEARS, RIGHT
DECADES, I GUESS. SO WHAT DO WE
LEARN FROM THIS? HOW DO WE MOVE
FORWARD PREPARING FOR THE NEXT
SERIES OF EVENTS BECAUSE TO ME,
I LOOK AT IT AND DISASTER MERCY
PLANNING THAT WE ALWAYS NEED TO
PREPARE WORST CASE, AND THERE IS
NO MATTER WHAT AND THE REASON
WHY I SAY THAT BACK IN 2006. I
WAS DEPLOYED TO HURRICANES
READING COUNTRY TO LOUISIANA AND
BACK THEN FEMA AND EVERYBODY IN
THOSE STATES THAT WE'RE READY
FOR THE HURRICANES WHEN THEY
CAME TO THE SURGEONS CAME OVER
30 FT. INLAND AND WIPED OUT
COMMUNITIES. I WAS PROBABLY
THERE WITHIN THE FIRST WEEK AS A
REAL BOOTS ON THE GROUND AND IT
WAS CHAOS GOING TO THE COMMUNITY
TO THE COMMAND CENTERS. IT WAS
LIKE, GRAB YOUR STUFF AND GO
BECAUSE NOBODY KNEW ANYTHING.
THAT WAS 2006. I KNOW. NOW
MOVING FORWARD. THINGS HAVE
CHANGED, AND GENERALLY, YOU
TALKED ABOUT CALIFORNIA IT IS A
DISASTER PRONE STATE STUFFS ARE
GONNA HAPPEN HERE. WHETHER IT'S
THE FIRES, THE FLOODS AND MY
BIGGEST THINGS. I ADVOCATE
EARTHQUAKES. WHAT DO WE DO WHEN
WE'RE HAVING THIS MAJOR
FLOODING? LEVY START TO BREAK
AND THEN AN EARTHQUAKE. WE'RE
NOT READY. READY? I DON'T THINK
SO. HOW DO WE LOOK? YOU KNOW,
MOVE FORWARD ADDRESSING THESE
ISSUES, AND I KNOW A LOT OF IT
MAY COME TO US TO PUTTING FUNDS
SET ASIDE TO MAKE SURE WE
PREPARE OURSELVES AS LESSONS
LEARNED FROM WHAT HAPPENED HERE
MOVING FORWARD. I DON'T KNOW IF
ANYBODY CAN ELABORATE. I KNOW
SOME OF THE FIRST PANEL TALKED
ABOUT YOU KNOW, INVESTING MORE
TABLETOP SCENARIOS. I WAS MOVED
FORWARD BECAUSE THINGS ARE GOING
TO HAPPEN AND PEOPLE COME AND GO
ON SOME OF THESE POSITIONS. SO
HOW DO WE KIND OF CONTINUE
MOVING CALIFORNIA FORD AND BEING
THAT LEADER WHEN IT COMES TO
DISASTER RESPONSE AND
PREPAREDNESS, INDULGE ME AND LET
ME GO FIRST. I THINK CALIFORNIA
WAS WELL PREPARED FOR THIS
EVENT. UM. IF YOU'RE FAMILIAR
WITH GREEK MYTHOLOGY, THERE IS A
CHARACTER IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
CALLED CASSANDRA. WHO HAD A
CURSE, AND SHE COULD PREDICT THE
FUTURE. BUT HER CURSE WAS THAT
NOBODY BELIEVED HER AND I FEEL
LIKE SOME OF MY COLLEAGUES AND
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT LIVE THAT
CURSE OCCASIONALLY. UM, BUT IN
THIS STATE, I FEEL WELL
SUPPORTED AND LISTEN TO THAT. WE
CAN ADDRESS SOME OF THE NEEDS
THAT WE HAVE. UM WHAT I THINK
IMPACTED. SOME OF THIS IS IT
HAPPENED ON A HOLIDAY WEEKEND.
HOLIDAY WEEKEND WHERE PEOPLE
WERE EXPECTING TO BE OUT,
CELEBRATING AND INDULGING. UM
AND THAT IMPACTED STAFFING. IT
IMPACTED OUR ABILITY TO NOTIFY
PEOPLE OF IMPENDING DANGER. UM
TRAVEL ALONG THE FREEWAY SYSTEMS
AND THE IMPACTS THAT HAPPENED.
THERE WERE, UM YOU KNOW SOME
IMPORTANT THINGS THAT HAPPEN IN
SACRAMENTO COUNTY AND WHERE
LIVES WERE LOST. AND, UM I'D
LIKE TO SAY THAT WE'RE WELL
PREPARED FOR THIS EVENT, BUT I
ALSO KNOW THAT IT IS INCUMBENT
UPON US TO KEEP PREPARING, AND
THAT'S WHY I DID MENTION THE
NEED FOR THAT RE SOURCING. UM,
AND THAT IT FINANCIAL INVESTMENT
AND PROFESSIONAL EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT AT THE LOCAL LEVEL.
THERE'S BEEN TREMENDOUS SUPPORT
AT THE STATE LEVEL. UM, ONE OF
MY FAVORITE PEOPLE. FROM THE
STATE WAS OUR EMERGENCY SERVICES
COORDINATOR WHO SAT SIDE BESIDE
ALL OF OUR STAFF IN THE U. S. C
AND PROVIDED THAT CONNECTION AND
THAT RESOURCE UM BUT AT THE SAME
TIME, YOU KNOW IF I HAD A
GREATER STAFF IF I HAD MORE
KNOWLEDGEABLE STAFF WHO COULD
SPECIALIZE IN SOME OF THESE
THINGS, I THINK THAT WOULD SET
US APART AND MOVE US EVEN
FURTHER FORWARD JUST FROM THE OS
SIDE. I FOR SOME, MARY JOHN. I'M
GLAD WE'RE ABLE TO SUPPORT YOU
AS WELL AS WE DID, AND, UH,
KELSEY AND DAVID IS IN AND
OTHERS. UM I ALSO AGREE WE WERE
PREPARED. WE GENERAL AND HIS
TEAM WERE ACTIVELY IN FRONT OF
THIS. THE ADVANCED PLANET CELL
WAS WORKING DAYS BEFORE THE
FIRST ATMOSPHERIC RIVER CAME
ABROAD. UM UM, THANKS TO PEOPLE
LIKE MIKE AS OUR STATE
CLIMATOLOGIST THAT ALERTED US
VERY EARLY THAT THIS WAS
POTENTIALLY COME IN. I THINK
WHAT? WHAT WE SAW IS IT HASN'T
REALLY RAINED HERE IN SEVERAL
YEARS. AND YOU KNOW WHEN IT
STARTED TO RAIN, AND WE WERE
SAYING CONSULATE, CALTRANS HAD
SIGNS UP WHEN YOU WERE DRIVING
RIGHT, LIKE, STAY OFF THE ROAD.
AND YOU KNOW, IT'S DIFFICULT TO
GRASP WHAT THAT IS IN CALIFORNIA
BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T SEEN THIS IN
A VERY LONG TIME. UH AND I THINK
MOVING FORWARD WE ALWAYS HAVE TO
PREPARE. WE HAVE TO HAVE PLANS
IN PLACE. WE HAVE TO EXERCISE.
THAT'S WHAT WE DO WITH RVS. WE
HAVE A STRONG PARTNERSHIP WITH
ALL OF OUR STATE AND LOCAL
PARTNERS. AND THIS IS JUST
ANOTHER. THING BUT I AGREE WITH
YOU. YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU PREPARE
FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS, YOU
ALSO HAVE TO PREPARE FOR THAT
EARTHQUAKE WHEREVER THAT MAY BE
, AND YOU ALSO HAVE TO ACQUIRE.
I MEAN, PREPARE FOR THAT CYBER
ATTACK THAT MAY PUT YOUR SYSTEMS
IN PLACE AND REALLY HAVE A
MAXIMUM OF MAXIMUM PLAN, AND
THAT'S WHAT WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO
DO HERE AT OS WITH OUR STATE
PARTNERS GENERAL, IF YOU HAVE
ANYTHING ELSE THERE RYAN IS
ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. I DON'T TAILOR
WHAT YOU SAID. MR CHAIRMAN AT
THE TRAINING AND EXERCISE
COMPONENT IS HUGELY IMPORTANT.
YOU KNOW, THESE SKILLS ARE
PERISHABLE PEOPLE CHANGE JOBS,
SO I KNOW THAT THAT MILITARY
DEPARTMENT SO THERE'S OUR STATE
LOCAL PARTNERS, FEDERAL PARTNERS
FEMA. WE ALL HAVE A PRETTY
ROBUST TRAINING EXERCISE
PROGRAM. WE NEED CONTINUE TO DO
THAT. I THINK THAT'S WHERE YOU
WIN. SO YOU'RE NOT MEETING
SOMEBODY FOR THE FIRST TIME WHEN
SOMETHING BAD HAS HAPPENED?
THOSE RELATIONSHIPS HAVE BEEN
DEVELOPED. THE TEAMS KNOW WHAT
THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO DO
GENERALLY, FROM AN ALL HAZARDS
STANDPOINT, THE END OF THE DAY.
WE DON'T CARE WHAT IT IS. THE
CONCEPTS OF THE PRINCIPLES ARE
FUNDAMENTALLY THE SAME TRAINING
EXERCISE THINGS HUGE AND WITH
THAT'S IT. I WANT TO. I JUST
WANT TO HIGHLIGHT ONE THING REAL
QUICK. I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO
RECOGNIZE IN THAT FIRST PANEL
THAT THE FORECASTING CAPACITY
UH, OF OUR WEATHER PARTNERS IS
CRITICAL. UM RIGHT NOW, THE BEST
AVAILABLE DATA COMES TO US, 12
TO 24 HOURS AT MOST AHEAD OF
TIME IN TERMS OF INTENSITY,
LOCATION, DURATION, AND THOSE
FURTHER OUT MODELS ARE NOT
ACCURATE ENOUGH. SO WE NEED TO
GET BETTER THERE. WE ALSO NEED
TO GET BETTER ON THE CALIFORNIA
NEVADA RIVER FORECASTING CENTER
SIDE OF THINGS. I THINK, UM,
THOSE MODELS WHILE PROBABLY VERY
COMPLEX AND ROBUST, WE'RE NOT
ACCOUNTING FOR ALL OF THE THINGS
THAT THEY NEED TO ACCOUNT FOR
NOW, UM, NOT ONLY IN THE SAN
LORENZO RIVER BUT ALSO IN THE
PAR OR WHEREVER WATERSHED, SO I
THINK THERE'S OPPORTUNITIES TO
IMPROVE THOSE FORECASTING MODELS
, BOTH WEATHER AND RIVER THAT WE
NEED TO FOCUS ON AS WAS
ARTICULATED A LITTLE BIT. IN THE
FIRST PANEL. I WOULD SECOND WITH
MY COLLEAGUE IN SANTA CRUZ
COUNTY HAS SAID LITERALLY EVERY
SINGLE TIME THE HYDRO GRAPHS
WERE UP. DATED FOR THAT. YOU
KNOW, 20 DAY PERIOD, THE ACTUAL
PRECIPITATION WITH SIGNIFICANTLY
GREATER THAN WHAT HAD BEEN
FORECASTED. UM AND SO MODELING
COULD BE EXTREMELY BETTER AND
MORE USEFUL FOR THAT REAL TIME
DECISION MAKING WHAT I WILL ALSO
SAY IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE
STRUGGLE WITH IS THE CONCEPT IS
OF DISASTER SERVICE WORKERS.
WELL YES, EVERY GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEE IS A DISASTER SERVICE
WORKER. IT IS EXTREMELY
DIFFICULT TO TRAIN THOUSANDS OF
PEOPLE IN A PARAMILITARY
STRUCTURE, WHICH IS WHAT I C S
IS TO WORK IN AN E. O. C. A LOT
OF THEM ARE UNFAMILIAR WITH HOW
CHAIN OF COMMAND WORKS. IT'S
DIFFICULT TO PULL THEM OUT OF
THEIR BUREAUCRATIC CHAIN OF
COMMAND THAT THEY HAVE ON A DAY
TO DAY BASIS AND TO PULL THEM
AWAY FROM THEIR JOBS AND
TYPICALLY MANDATES THAT THEY
HAVE. AND SO THAT'S WHEN WE'RE
TALKING ABOUT. YOU KNOW, WE AS
EMERGENCY MANAGERS ARE AWARE OF
THE RISK. WE ARE PREPARED, AND I
DON'T THINK ANY OF US WERE
SURPRISED ABOUT THIS BECAUSE WE
TALK ABOUT THIS ALL DAY EVERY
DAY, AND WE'RE CONSTANTLY
STRUGGLING WITH LIMITED
RESOURCES AND LIMITED ATTENTION
IN THE POLITICAL SPHERE BECAUSE
THE SECOND THE DISASTERS OVER
THE ATTENTION ESSENTIALLY
DISSIPATES. UM AND IT'S NOT
BROUGHT TO EVERYONE'S FOREFRONT
UNTIL IT'S TOO LATE UNTIL THAT
24 HOURS, AND THEY'RE WONDERING
WHY WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH
RESOURCES. WHY WE DON'T HAVE
ENOUGH TRAINING. WHY THE
FACILITY ISN'T LARGE ENOUGH. WHY
WE ARE SENDING OUT EMERGENCY
ALERTS. AND IT'S BECAUSE OF THAT
MYOPIC NATURE OF OUR COMMUNITIES
AND HOW WE ADDRESS EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT AND PREPAREDNESS,
BOTH AT THE GOVERNMENT LEVEL BUT
WITHIN THE COMMUNITY AS WELL.
AND SO WE REALLY NEED TO TALK
ABOUT THAT PARADIGM SHIFT WITHIN
THE COMMUNITY. AND HOW WHAT?
WHAT DOES THE RESILIENT
COMMUNITY ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE? UM
WHAT IS IT GOING TO TAKE? AND
RIGHT NOW WE'RE AT THE VERY
START OF THAT. WELL YES, WE ARE
THE FOREFRONT IN THE COUNTRY FOR
PREPAREDNESS AND MITIGATION. WE
STILL HAVE A VERY LONG WAYS TO
GO. CLIMATE CHANGE IS ACTUALLY
HERE. I KNOW WE'VE BEEN TALKING
ABOUT YOU KNOW, ONE DAY IT'LL
BE. IT'S HERE. WE HAVE
COMMUNITIES LIVING IN IT DAILY.
UM AND IT'S NO LONGER REALLY
SOMETHING THAT WE CAN IGNORE THE
EXPECTATION OF SERVICES FROM
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT HAS GREATLY
SURPASSED THE AMOUNT OF FUNDING
AVAILABLE. AND IF YOU LOOK AT
THE EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
PERFORMANCE GRANTED IT HAS ONLY
INCREASED IN LIKE 200 MILLION IN
THE LAST DECADE, WHEREAS
HOMELAND SECURITY FOR EQUIPMENT
HAS ALMOST TRIPLED. SO WE NEED
TO REALLY LOOK AT OUR FUNDING
PRIORITIES FOR WHAT WE WANT TO
SEE IN THE COMMUNITY AND HOW
BEST TO DO THAT. AT THE END OF
THE DAY. STATE AND LOCAL
RESOURCES ARE FANTASTIC, BUT THE
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS ARE ULTIMATELY
RESPONSIBLE FOR THOSE DECISIONS
LONG AFTER YOU ALL LEAVE, AND SO
I HIGHLY ENCOURAGE, UM, LIKE I
SAID, MORE CAPACITY AT THE LOCAL
LEVEL. OKAY THANK YOU THAT I WAS
. I WILL ADMIT I WILL EAT THIS
THAT WE WERE UNPREPARED. UM FOR
A PORTION OF OUR COMMUNITY. WE
WERE PREPARING FOR OUR FIBER
BURN SCAR AREAS AND OUR
TRADITIONAL AREAS OF IMPACT FOR
A LARGE STORM. WE HAVE NOT HAD
LARGE STORM IMPACTS IN OUR NORTH
COUNTY. IT WAS SOMETHING THAT WE
WERE CAUGHT OFF GUARD ON THEY
WERE NOT YOUR TRADITIONAL
WATERSHED STREAM OR FIRE IMPACT
ZONES. THESE WERE SIMPLY AREAS
OF AGRICULTURE THAT DID NOT HAVE
DRAINAGE AND CONCEPTS ASSOCIATED
WITH SIGNIFICANT, UM STORMS. AND
THEN THE CONCEPTS OF GEOLOGICAL
CONCEPTS OF OUR CANYONS. THESE
AREN'T WATERWAYS. THESE ARE JUST
SIMPLY CANYONS AND ROADWAYS THAT
ARE BUILT INTO OUR
INFRASTRUCTURE BUILT INTO
CANYONS OR HILLSIDES. AND SO
THOSE AREAS HADN'T BEEN IMPACTED
SINCE THE 1969 FLOOD GOING BACK
TO THE MODELING THE ARC STORM
CONCEPT SUPPORTING ARC STORM
SCENARIO SCENARIOS LIKE WE HAVE
FOR EARTHQUAKES ON LOCAL
REGIONAL LEVELS TO GET MORE
GRANULAR DATA FOR US TO BASE OUR
PLANNING ON SO I'M NOT JUST
LOOKING AT MY BURN SCARS ON MY
WATERWAYS, BUT I'M LOOKING AT MY
WHOLE COUNTY AS POTENTIAL FLOOD.
MAJORITY OF MY IMPACTS WERE NOT
IN FLOOD ZONES. THANK YOU, OKAY.
THANK YOU. UM SO WITH THAT SAID,
I JUST HAVE ONE LAST QUESTION
AND WE CAN MOVE ON TO OUR LAST
MAN. I KNOW IT LITTLE BIT LONGER
THAN ANTICIPATED. BUT THERE'S A
LOT TO TALK ABOUT A LOT OF
LESSONS LEARNED. AND OBVIOUSLY
THIS IS SOMETHING NEW. HAS THIS
FLOODS KIND OF TOOK US IN A
DIFFERENT DIRECTION. UM SO,
MAJOR GENERAL, JUST WANT TO ASK
YOU A QUESTION ON HOW YOU GUYS
DEPLOY RIGHT THERE SEEMS LIKE
THERE'S TWO DIFFERENT
ORGANIZATIONS. YOUR YOUR
DEPARTMENT WITH THE VOLUNTEER
THE GUARD. HOW DO YOU GUYS
ACTIVATE AND WORK
SIMULTANEOUSLY? AS RECON AND
THESE RESOURCES, RIGHT?
HOPEFULLY YOU NEVER DO BUT I
KNOW THEY'RE THEY'RE HAPPY GUYS
DEPLOYED AND WORK TOGETHER TO
RESPOND TO THESE EMERGENCIES AS
THEY'RE CALLED UPON, SO WE HAVE
GREAT CAPACITY AND CAPABILITY
ACROSS THE ENTIRE DEPTH OF
BREATH OF THE ORGANIZATION.
THINK YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT OUR
STATE GUARD, WHICH IS TRUE? YEAH
REPRESENT A LITTLE LESS THAN 5%
OF OUR HEADCOUNT. OK REPRESENT
PROBABLY LESS THAN 1% OF OUR
ACTUAL CAPACITY AND CAPABILITY.
WE GENERALLY DEPLOYED THEM AND
SOME WERE ACTUALLY DEPLOYED ON
THIS OPERATION. WE USE THEM AS
LIAISON OFFICER. THEY BACKFILL
OUR HEADQUARTERS IN CERTAIN
CRITICAL PLACES WHERE FOLKS
MIGHT BE DEPLOYED OUT IN THE
FIELD, AND THEY COME IN AND BACK
PHYLLIS, SO THEY PROVIDE A
CRITICAL ROLE FOR SURE. IT'S
JUST THAT THE GENERAL TYPES OF
CAPABILITIES THAT WE REQUIRED TO
DEPLOY ON THIS OPERATION THEY
WEREN'T NEEDED. GREAT AND WITH
THAT, I THINK THE LAST REST OF
MY COLLEAGUES. IT'S BEEN A LONG
DAY. BUT THANK YOU ALL FOR
JOINING US TODAY IN, UH, SHARING
YOUR YOUR THOUGHTS AND
SUGGESTIONS ARE MOVING FORWARD
SO THAT WILL MOVE IT ONTO OUR
LAST PANEL. LET'S FIRST HEAR
FROM OUR CENTRAL VALLEY BOARD
PRESIDENT JANE DOLAN. UM
PRESIDENT DOLAN, YOU MAY BEGIN.
GOOD AFTERNOON AND THANK YOU. UH
THIS DOESN'T SOUND LIKE IT'S ON
FOR ME, BUT I HOPE IT IS FOR
YOU. THANK YOU FOR STAYING HERE.
UM THANK YOU TOOK MY NOTES AND
I'VE TRUNCATED THEM, BUT I WOULD
LOOK FORWARD TO A LONGER
CONVERSATION AT ANY POINT THAT
THAT THAT CAN BE ARRANGED. I'M
JANE DOLAN. I'M THE PRESIDENT OF
THE CENTRAL VALLEY FLOOD
PROTECTION BOARD. WE ARE AN
ENTITY THAT WAS STRENGTHENED AND
RECREATED AND RENAMED BY THE
LEGISLATURE IN 2007 AND THEN
FORMALIZING MORE. DETAILED
ACTIONS BY STATUTES IN 2008 WE
REPRESENT AND GOVERN BY
PERMITTING OVERSIGHT AND
IMPLEMENTATION ENCOURAGEMENT
THAT SENT GREAT CENTRAL VALLEY
OF CALIFORNIA, WHICH ACROSS THE
UNITED STATES IS CONSIDERED ONE
OF THE TWO MOST VULNERABLE, FLED
PRONE AREAS. YOUR CENTRAL VALLEY
ARE CENTRAL VALLEY AND THE
LOUISIANA COAST. UM THE ANSWER
TO WHETHER OR NOT WE PREPARED IS
BOTH. YES. AND NO. WE SAW THAT
THE FLOOD INFRASTRUCTURE SYSTEMS
, THE DAMS, THE WEIRS THE
BYPASSES, UH AND THE LEVEES THAT
HAVE ADEQUATE MAINTENANCE AND
HAVE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE
IMPROVEMENT FROM A SYSTEM THAT
IS 50 TO 100 YEARS OLD,
PERFORMED AS EXPECTED AND
PROVIDED SAFETY AND RESILIENCE
AND OPPORTUNITY FOR EVACUATION.
THE AREAS THAT DID NOT DID NOT
DO SO WELL. BUT I ALSO WANT TO
POINT OUT WHAT WE ALL KNOW IS
THAT OUR RESERVOIRS WERE VERY
LOW AND THAT REALLY HELPED. SO
THE NEXT ATMOSPHERIC RIVER THAT
COMES WILL NOT HAVE THAT
OPPORTUNITY FOR THAT, FOR THAT
STORAGE ARE RURAL AND
AGRICULTURAL AREAS HAS HAS BEEN
EXPRESSED. AND WE CERTAINLY KNOW
THAT ARE DEFINITELY VULNERABLE
AND AT RISK. THERE IS A PLAN.
YOU DIRECTED THAT A PLAN B DONE.
THE FIRST EVER PLAN OF THE
CENTRAL VALLEY WAS ADAPTED
PREPARED BY TWR EXTENSIVE
HEARINGS. LOTS OF STAKEHOLDER
INPUT, THOROUGHLY REVIEWED AND
ADOPTED BY THE BY THE BOARD IN
2012 UPDATED IN 2017. THIS IS
THE THIRD ITERATION IN THE
SECOND, THE SECOND UPDATE THE
THEMES OF THIS PLAN AND ITS
THOROUGH AND IT'S 2 99 PAGES.
YOU CAN HAVE IT IF YOU WANT. WE
HAVE A FOUR PAGE OUTLINE THAT I
WOULD LIKE TO LEAVE WITH YOU SO
THAT YOU CAN SEE WHAT IT IS
THERE. THERE. THE THEMES ARE
CLIMATE RESILIENCE. PERFORMANCE
IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE OTHER
STATE PROGRAMS THAT HAD THE WORD
WATER OR FLOOD WITHIN THEM. WE
ARE A PARTNER WITH OUR GREAT
OTHER PARTNERS, THE DEPARTMENT
OF WATER RESOURCES AND ALL THAT
WE DO AND ALL THAT THEY DO WITH
FLOOD MANAGEMENT AND FLUIDS. OUR
GREATEST OPPORTUNITY IN THE
FUTURE TO ADDRESS THESE THREE
ISSUES IS TO WIDEN OR FLOODPLAIN
. GIVE IT SPACE FOR FLOODWATERS
TO GO. SO THAT IS NOT IN
PEOPLE'S HOMES. NOT IN OUR
CLINICAL INFRASTRUCTURE, NOT
ACROSS OUR EVACUATION ROUTES OF
HIGHWAYS AND NOT WHERE PEOPLE
ARE IN HARM. WE CAN DO THAT
THROUGH INVESTING IN OUR VERY
SLOW GOING UPDATE OF THE
DESIGNATED FLOOD WAYS SO THAT WE
CAN HAVE BETTER LAND USE
PLANNING, AND WE CAN HAVE A
BETTER IDENTIFICATION OF WHERE
FLOOD WATER CAN BE, AND THAT
WOULD BE A STORAGE AS WELL. IT
WOULD BE BOTH, UH, GROUNDED. UH,
GROUND LEVEL STORAGE, BUT ALSO
GROUND WATER STORAGE AS WELL AND
WE HAVE IDENTIFIED THAT IT CAN
CONTRIBUTE TO THE GROUNDWATER
RECHARGE THAT IS SO ESSENTIAL IN
THE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY. UM ARE
FLOOD SYSTEM HAS RESOURCES, BUT
NOT ENOUGH TO ENACT WHAT NEEDS
TO BE DONE. WHAT WE KNOW NEEDS
TO BE DONE AND TO ADEQUATELY
OPERATE AND MAINTAIN OUR OUR
DISTRICT. OUR SYSTEM. WE BASED
THIS PLAN, WE BASED ALL OF OUR
ACTIONS ON THIS CLIMATE CHANGE
STUDY THAT'S DONE. IT'S BEEN
IMPROVED ITS EXCELLENT, OF
COURSE, IT ALWAYS NEEDS TO BE TO
BE REVIEWED. AND WE WOULD
CERTAINLY ENCOURAGE YOU TO
CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE TO THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. YOUR CENTRAL
VALLEY FLOOD PROTECTION BOARD IS
A NON FEDERAL SPONSOR WITH THE
U. S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS.
THEY'VE BEEN A GREAT PARTNER.
WHEN THEY STEP UP. THEY ARE
STEPPING UP AND THEY PERHAPS CAN
STEP UP A BIT MORE. IN MY IN MY
HUMBLE OPINION. I APPRECIATE
THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK WITH
YOU. I LOOK FORWARD TO MORE
FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES. THANK YOU
FOR HAVING THIS HEARING. THANK
YOU FOR INVITING US. WE HAVE A
LOT OF WORK TO DO TOGETHER. YES
THANK YOU. OUR NEXT WITNESS IS
PG AND E IS DIRECTOR OF
EMERGENCY PLANNING AND RESPONSE.
TRACY VARGAS, DIRECTOR. YOU MAY
BEGIN. GOOD AFTERNOON. WHAT'S
THIS ONE? OKAY? MY NAME IS TRACY
VARGAS. I'M THE DIRECTOR OF
EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS RESPONSE.
FOR THE PG AND A THANK YOU FOR
OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TO YOU THIS
AFTERNOON. I'D LIKE TO TALK A
LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR RESPONSE TO
THE STORM. AND PROVIDE YOU WITH
AN OVERVIEW OF THE IMPACTS THAT
THESE STORMS HAD NOT ONLY ON P
GENIE BUT ON OUR CUSTOMERS AND
THE LEVEL OF RESPONSE THAT WE
MOBILIZED. SO WE'LL GO AHEAD ON
OUR TOUR SECOND SLIDE. AND.
WE'LL BEGIN BY EMPHASIZING AS
ALWAYS THAT PG ANY, UM, SAFETY
IS OUR NUMBER ONE. AND TOP
PRIORITY. WE WORK NOT JUST TO
KEEP OUR CUSTOMERS SAFE, BUT
ALSO OUR COWORKERS AND THE
GREATER PUBLIC. THE METRICS YOU
SEE ON THE SLIDE DEMONSTRATE
JUST HOW EXTREME THE WEATHER WE
EXPERIENCED WAS THE HEAVY RAIN
SNOW, THE LOCALIZED FLOODING THE
SOIL INSTABILITIES, THE
LANDSLIDES, THE ROAD CLOSURES
AND OTHER HAZARDS THAT WE HEARD
ABOUT FROM OUR LOCAL PARTNERS
TODAY PRESENTED US WITH A
SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGE FOR
GETTING OUR CUSTOMERS POWER BACK
ON. WE ARE PROUD OF THE WAY THAT
OUR COMPANY RESPONDED, HOWEVER.
NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. THIS IS
GOING TO SHOW YOU THE DIFFERENT
WAVES OF THIS STORMS THAT WE
EXPERIENCED SO BETWEEN DECEMBER
30TH THROUGH JANUARY, 16TH OUR
STATE EXPERIENCE SEVEN STORM
WAVES THAT RESULTED IN OUTAGES
FOR APPROXIMATELY 2.8 MILLION
CUSTOMERS. SOME OF THESE
CUSTOMERS WENT OUT CAME BACK ON
WENT BACK OUT AGAIN. AND YOU CAN
SEE THAT SECOND STORM WAVE. WE
HAD 751,400. FOR CUSTOMERS THAT
WERE IMPACTED. THAT'S A
SIGNIFICANT NUMBER, EVEN WITH
THE SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF
CUSTOMERS THAT WE SERVE. ON
DECEMBER 31ST. WE DID ACTIVATE
OUR EMERGENCY OPERATION CENTER
TO MONITOR THESE OUTAGES,
RESTORE POWER AND SUPPORT OUR
COMMUNITIES. OUR CREWS WORKED
TIRELESSLY TO SAFELY RESTORE
POWER AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.
EVEN WITH THE DIFFICULTIES OUR
CREWS FACED ON AVERAGE 95% OF
IMPACTED CUSTOMERS HAD POWER
RESTORED WITHIN 24 HOURS. WE
FORMALLY DEACTIVATED R E O. C ON
JANUARY 17TH. HOWEVER, THE WORK
CONTINUES TODAY. NEXT SLIDE,
PLEASE. THIS IS JUST GOING TO
SHOW YOU SOME PICTURES OF SOME
OF THE VISUAL EXAMPLES OF THE
EXTENSION. EXTENSIVE DAMAGE THIS
WEATHER CAUSE TO OUR SYSTEM IN
THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA. THE
DAMAGE. MOST FREQUENTLY IMPACTED
OUR POWER LINES. IT INVOLVED
POLES, CROSS ARMS, TRANSFORMERS
AND OTHER EQUIPMENT. SYSTEM WIDE
WE EXPERIENCED 9500 INDIVIDUAL
DAMAGE CASES. IN THESE THREE
WEEKS. THAT MEANS THAT IT'S NOT
JUST AN EVENT THAT IS A PIECE OF
EQUIPMENT WAS DAMAGED, SO WE HAD
95,000 LOCATIONS AND DAMAGE
INCIDENTS. THAT IS HIGHLY
SIGNIFICANT. OUR MOST RECENT
COMPARABLE STORM HAD ABOUT 6000
INCIDENTS. NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.
SO AS YOU HEARD FROM ALL OF OUR
PUBLIC SAFETY PARTNERS, UM, TO
HEAR TODAY THE HISTORIC WEATHER
REQUIRED A HISTORIC RESPONSE AND
WE ACTUALLY MOBILIZED ONE OF THE
LARGEST STORM RESPONSES THAT OUR
COMPANY HAS EVER EXPERIENCED.
OUR CREWS WERE WORKING 24 HOURS
A DAY, SEVEN DAYS A WEEK FOR
THOSE THREE WEEKS AND BEYOND, TO
RESTORE POWER AND TO KEEP NOT
ONLY OUR COWORKER STATE, BUT OUR
CUSTOMERS SAFE. AT THE PEAK OF
OUR STORM RESPONSE. WE HAD
APPROXIMATELY 7200 DEDICATED
PERSONNEL ACROSS OUR SERVICE
TERRITORY WORKING. THIS INCLUDED
CONTRACTORS. MUTUAL AID CREWS
AND MUTUAL AID CONTRACT CREWS
FROM ACROSS THE UNITED STATES
YOU CAN SEE ON THE SLIDE THERE
WHERE WE HAD HEAVILY, UM,
RECEIVED MUTUAL AID RESOURCES.
WE ALSO GOT SOME CONTRACT CREWS
DOWN FROM CANADA. WE ALSO HAD
ALL OF OUR EMERGENCY RESPONSE
CENTERS OPENED NOT JUST OUR
EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER, BUT
FIVE REGIONAL EMERGENCY
OPERATION CENTERS AND 19
OPERATIONAL EMERGENCY CENTERS. P
GINI ORGANIZES OUR RESPONSE VERY
SIMILAR TO THE STATE OF
CALIFORNIA WHERE WE HAVE OUR
LOCAL LEVELS AND DIVISIONS
RESPONDING ALL THE WAY UP
THROUGH OUR EMERGENCY OPERATIONS
CENTER. WE HAVE STORM PREDICTION
MODELS. YOU HEARD A LOT ABOUT
THE WEATHER MODELS. TODAY WE
ACTUALLY HAVE ONE OURSELVES
CALLED STORM OUTAGE. PREDICTION
PROJECT MODELS THAT TAKES THE
WEATHER IMPACTS AND THE WEATHER
MODELING FROM MULTIPLE ENTITIES
PUTS IT TOGETHER WITH WHAT WE'VE
EXPERIENCED IN THE PAST TO
DETERMINE WHERE OUR CREWS SHOULD
GO BECAUSE WE KNOW WE CAN MODEL
WHERE OUR HIGHEST IMPACTED AREAS
ARE GOING TO BE. WHERE WE'RE
GOING TO HAVE SEE THE MOST
DAMAGE. SO WE TAKE OUR CREWS AND
THOSE MUTUAL AID CREWS, AND WE
PLACE THEM IN THOSE AREAS BASED
ON THAT. WHAT WE CALL OUR SOP
MODEL. WE SET UP BASE CAMP,
STAGING AREAS AND LAY DOWN
SITES. WE DO THAT AS CLOSE TO
IMPACTED AREAS AS POSSIBLE. WE
HAD A LARGE BASE CAMP THAT WE
SET UP VERY EARLY ON IN THE
EVENT DOWN IN SANTA CRUZ, AND
WE'LL SHOW YOU SOME PICTURES
FROM THAT THERE'S SPACE CAMP
SUPPORT. STAFF PROVIDE FOOD,
EMERGENCY SUPPLIES, SHOWER FIELD
LAUNDRY, YOU NAME IT STAGING
AREAS FOR OUR EQUIPMENT. NEXT
SLIDE, PLEASE. HERE'S SOME OF
THE IMPACTS THAT WE SAW TO OUR
CUSTOMERS. WE KNOW IT'S
IMPORTANT TO GET THE POWER BACK
ON WHEN IT GOES OUT, AND
THROUGHOUT THESE STORMS, WE HAD
MORE THAN 30,000 OUTAGES. WE
DEFINE AN OUTAGE AS AN
INTERRUPTION IN ELECTRIC SERVICE
TO ONE OR MORE CUSTOMER. SO WE
MAY HAVE 30,000 OUTAGES, BUT WE
HAD 2.8 MILLION CUSTOMERS ONE
TIME OR ANOTHER IMPACTED AND
THEN RESTORED FROM THOSE
OUTAGES. WE HAD 48 COUNTIES IN
OUR SERVICE TERRITORY THAT WERE
IMPACTED. WE HAVE AN EXTREMELY
LARGE SERVICE TERRITORY AS I'M
SURE, YOU KNOW, SO 48 OF THE
STATES COUNTIES WERE IMPACTED
AND THAT INCLUDED 31 TRIBES. OF
THESE IMPACTED CUSTOMERS. FOUR
OUT OF FIVE CUSTOMERS HAD POWER
RESTORED WITHIN 24 HOURS. I'M
SORRY WITHIN 12 HOURS AND
APPROXIMATELY 95. SAW
RESTORATION WITHIN 24 HOURS.
NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. WE HAD
ACCESS CHALLENGES. SO AS YOU
HEARD FROM OUR THE LOCAL
COUNTIES WHEN THEY STARTED
TALKING ABOUT THE IMPACT TO
THEIR COMMUNITIES, THEIR
COMMUNITIES BEING ISOLATED THEIR
COMMUNITIES BEING EVACUATED THAT
ALSO IMPACTED OUR ABILITY TO
ACCESS THESE DAMAGE INCIDENTS
AND THESE SITES TO BE ABLE TO
RESTORE POWER. WE REPORTED 125
HAZARD INCIDENTS THROUGHOUT OUR
SERVICE TERRITORY. THESE
INCLUDED FLOODING, LANDSLIDES,
AVALANCHES, EVACUATIONS, DEBRIS
FLOW WARNINGS AND MORE. WE WERE
SPECIALLY CHALLENGED IN THE CITY
OF SALINAS AND THE COUNTIES OF
SANTA CRUZ AND SAN LUIS OBISPO.
THE HAZARDS CREATED SAFETY
ISSUES JUST LIKE THEY DO FOR THE
GENERAL PUBLIC. THEY ALSO CREATE
SAFETY ISSUES FOR OUR EMPLOYEES
AND OUR CREWS OUT THERE. WE HAD
TO PULL OUT CRUZ ON A COUPLE OF
OCCASIONS BECAUSE OF THE SAFETY
ISSUES. WE HAD A VIDEO EMBEDDED
IN HERE, BUT IT WAS FROM YOUTUBE
AND IT CAN'T BE CLICKED ON TO
START. BUT IF YOU IF YOU GOOGLE
IT YOU'RE GOING TO SEE A YOUTUBE
WHERE WE HAD SOMEBODY IN A
BUCKET TRUCK WHERE A TREE CAME
DOWN, LANDED ON THE ARM LEFT
EARLY. HE WAS APPROPRIATELY
HOOKED INTO THE BUCKET TRUCK
WITH ALL OF HIS FALL PROTECTION
GEAR, BUT HE WAS DANGLING FROM
THE BUCKET TRUCK BECAUSE THAT
TREE HAD IMPACTED THE ARM. SO WE
HAD TO PULL PEOPLE OUT. WE COULD
NOT, UM, IMPACT THEIR SAFETY AND
THEIR LIVES. WE PULLED THEM OUT
, JUST LIKE THOSE RESIDENTS WERE
PULLED OUT IN THOSE HIGH HAZARD
AREAS AND HAD TO WAIT UNTIL
ACCESS WAS AVAILABLE TO US TO
BEGIN THOSE RESTORATION
PROCESSES AGAIN. NEXT SLIDE,
PLEASE. DURING THESE STORMS. WE
SUPPORTED OUR CUSTOMERS WITH
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES. ONE THING
I PARTICULARLY, I'M PROUD OF IS
HOW WE WORKED WITH OUR PUBLIC
AGENCY, UM, PARTNERS AND HAD A
PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP. WE
PROVIDED 7100 CUSTOMERS WERE
SUPPORTED BY TEMPORARY
GENERATION. THAT MEANS WE
BROUGHT IN, UM LARGE GENERATORS
TO BE ABLE TO POWER SMALL CITIES
. WE WERE ABLE TO PROVIDE SOME
MICROGRIDS. WE ALSO WORKED WITH
THE LOCAL COUNTIES TO HELP
SUPPORT THEM AT THEIR WARMING
CENTERS AND SHELTERS. WE
PROVIDED MORE THAN 8000 GO BAGS
FOR CUSTOMERS. THOSE GO BAGS
INCLUDED WATER, SNACKS AND
BATTERY PACKS. THE BATTERY PACKS
WERE INSTRUMENTAL IN THEM BEING
ABLE TO CHARGE THEIR PHONES. WE
FULFILLED MORE THAN 350 REQUESTS
FOR SMALL PORTABLE GENERATORS
FOR OUR CUSTOMERS WHO ARE
EXPERIENCING EXTENDED OUTAGE
OUTAGES, THESE PORTABLE
GENERATORS WERE FILTERED THROUGH
THE LOCAL PUBLIC SAFETY PARTNERS
THROUGH THE OPERATIONAL AREAS UP
TO US, WE WERE ABLE TO PROVIDE
THOSE PORTABLE GENERATORS
DIRECTLY TO CUSTOMERS, AND THOSE
ARE THERE'S WE DIDN'T ASK FOR
HIM BACK. WE PROVIDED THEM THE
GENERATORS WITH A FUEL CARD, SO
THAT WAY THEY COULD GO AND GET
FUEL FOR THOSE GENERATORS AS
NEEDED. WE REACHED OUT VIA
DIRECT PHONE CALLS TO OUR
MEDICAL BASELINE PROGRAM
CUSTOMERS TO OFFER SUPPORT AND
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES. NEXT
SLIDE, PLEASE. BEYOND PROVIDING
SUPPORT. WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE
TO KEEP OUR CUSTOMERS AND
COMMUNITIES INFORMED. I'M AN
EMERGENCY MANAGER. I STARTED MY
CAREER DOWN. IT'S SANDWICHES ARE
STATE OF CALIFORNIA OFFICE OF
EMERGENCY SERVICES, AND OUR
MANTRA IS YOU PROVIDE
INFORMATION EARLY AND OFTEN YOU
WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOUR
CUSTOMERS KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON.
IT DOESN'T MATTER IF IT'S A
PUBLIC ENTITY OR PRIVATE COMPANY
. IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE
PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION. SO WE
ACTUALLY SENT APPROXIMATELY 6.2
MILLION DIRECT CUSTOMER
NOTIFICATIONS, AND THOSE WERE TO
CONTINUOUSLY UPDATE THEM ON THE
RESTORATION PROCESS AND WHAT
THEY COULD EXPECT SO THEY COULD
PREPARE. IF THEIR POWER IS GOING
TO COME ON IN A COUPLE OF HOURS,
THEY CAN HANG TIGHT. IF IT'S
GOING TO BE 24 HOURS THERE.
PROBABLY ONE GOING TO WANT TO GO
SEE IF THEY CAN FIND A HOTEL. WE
HELD 17 MEDIA BRIEFINGS AND WE
ALSO LEVERAGED SOCIAL MEDIA TO
GET MESSAGES AND VIDEOS OUT. OUR
METEOROLOGISTS WERE CONSTANTLY
PROVIDING INFORMATION AS WELL AS
OUR COMPANY LEADERSHIP. WE
REALLY APPRECIATE THE
OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK WITH YOU
TODAY, AND I'LL BE HAPPY TO TAKE
QUESTIONS AT THE END. THANK YOU
ON OUR FINAL WITNESS IS MUCH
DIRECTOR OF DISTRIBUTION,
PLANNING AND OPERATIONS AND
MARIA THE LAST VELOSO, COIN
DIRECTOR. YOU MAY BEGIN. THANK
YOU GOOD AFTERNOON COMMITTEE
CHAIRS AND MEMBERS OF THE
COMMITTEE. I'M THANK YOU FOR
INVITING SMUD TO BE PART OF THIS
IMPORTANT DISCUSSION. I'M MARIA
VELOSO KOENIG, THE DIRECTOR OF
DISTRIBUTION, PLANNING AND
OPERATIONS HERE AT SMUD WERE THE
SIXTH LARGEST COMMUNITY OWNED
NOT FOR PROFIT ELECTRIC SERVICE
PROVIDER IN THE COUNTRY. AND
WE'VE BEEN PROVIDING LOW COST
RELIABLE AND CLEAN ELECTRICITY
TO THE SACRAMENTO REGION FOR
MORE THAN 75 YEARS. TODAY WE
HAVE ABOUT 645,000 CUSTOMERS,
AND WE SERVE A POPULATION OF 1.5
MILLION PEOPLE. YOU'VE HEARD
FROM PREVIOUS SPEAKERS ABOUT THE
UNPRECEDENTED NATURE OF THE
JANUARY STORMS. DAYS OF HEAVY
RAIN, MULTIPLE INSTANCES OF
HURRICANE FORCE WINDS COST
DESTRUCTION, EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO
OUR EQUIPMENT AND A RECORD
NUMBER OF POWER OUTAGES FOR OUR
CUSTOMERS. I'LL TALK ABOUT THE
IMPACT OF SMUT AND OUR CUSTOMERS
AND HOW WE SUPPORTED THEM. I'LL
ALSO GIVE YOU AN INSIGHT INTO
THE LARGEST POWER RESTORATION
EFFORT IN SMUTS HISTORY AND HOW
IMPORTANT OUR PARTNERSHIPS WITH
THE LOG WITH THE NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE, THE COUNTY AND
STATE. OH, YES AND OTHER
UTILITIES ARE IN PREPARING FOR
WHETHER EVENTS AND RESPONDING TO
EMERGENCIES. STORM PREPARATION
IS A YEAR ROUND JOB AT SMUD. WE
HAVE A ROBUST VEGETATION
MANAGEMENT PROGRAM WHERE WE
PRUNE AND REMOVE VEGETATION THAT
THREATENS OUR INFRASTRUCTURE. WE
ALSO HAVE ONGOING MAINTENANCE
PROGRAMS TO INSPECT EQUIPMENT IN
THE FIELD AND PROACTIVELY
REPLACE POLLS IN UNDERGROUND
CABLE. OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE,
ESPECIALLY THE ONE HERE, LOCATED
IN THE SACRAMENTO OFFICE IS
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. WEATHER
FORECAST ALERTS US TO POTENTIAL
WIND AND OR STORMS, WHICH ARE
THE TRIGGERS THAT REALLY START
OUR STORM RESPONSE PREPARATION.
THIS INCLUDES MOBILIZING STAFF
FOR AROUND THE COMPANY TO
RESPOND 24 BY SEVEN EMPLOYEE AND
PUBLIC SAFETY IS OUR MOST
IMPORTANT PRIORITY AND WHETHER
FORECAST HELPS US TO TAKE ACTION
TO KEEP OUR CREWS AND OUR AND
THE PUBLIC SAFE. UNTIL THIS
YEAR. WE COMPARED OUR STORM
DAMAGE AND RELATED OUTAGES TO
THE JANUARY 2008 STORM, WHICH
WAS THE MOST SIGNIFICANT STORM
IN SMUTS MODERN HISTORY. THE
JANUARY STORMS WERE VERY MUCH
DIFFERENT AND THEIR IMPACT MUCH
MORE SEVERE. STORMS TYPICALLY
BRING DOWN LIMBS AND BRANCHES
AND OCCASIONALLY ENTIRE TREES,
WITH THE GROUND SATURATED FROM
DAYS OF RAIN, HURRICANE FORCE
WINDS AND NUMBER OF ENTIRE TREES
DOWN ACROSS OUR SERVICE AREA.
IT'S BEEN UNLIKE ANY OTHER, UM,
EVENT THAT WE'VE EXPERIENCED FOR
SMUD. 2023 IS NOW THE MEASURING
STICK AGAINST IN WHICH WE
MEASURE ALL FUTURE STORMS. IN
THE 1ST 10 DAYS OF 2023. WE HAD
1800 DOWN CONDUCTORS OR WIRES,
WHICH ARE SIX TIMES MORE THAN
WHAT WE HAD IN 2008. THERE WERE
MORE THAN 1500 OUTAGES, DOUBLE
THE NUMBER FROM THE 2008 STORM.
WE REPLACED MORE THAN 425 POLLS
AND TO PUT THAT INTO PERSPECTIVE
, SMUD REPLACES ABOUT 1200 POLES
EACH YEAR AS PART OF OUR REGULAR
POVERTY PRECEDENT PROGRAM. WE
RESPONDED TO MORE THAN 1000
SIGNIFICANT TREE AND VEGETATION
ISSUES. MOST OF THOSE WERE TO
CLEAR A HAZARD BEFORE OUR LINE
CREWS COULD RESPOND TO GET THE
POWER BACK ON. ALL TOLD, 599,000
OF OUR CUSTOMERS LOST POWER OVER
THE TWO WEEK PERIOD BECAUSE OF
THE STORMS. WE HAD 90 90% OF
THOSE CUSTOMERS STORED IN LESS
THAN 24 HOURS. THE RESPONSE TO
THE JANUARY STORMS WAS THE
LARGEST IN STUDS HISTORY. OUR
EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER WAS
QUICKLY MOBILIZED TO COORDINATES
MUDS RESPONSE AND WORKED IN
PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COUNTY AND
STATE OFFICE OF EMERGENCY
SERVICES. WE ALSO SENT STAFF TO
BE IN THE COUNTY O E S OFFICE
FOR COORDINATION PURPOSES. IT'S
ALWAYS ALL HANDS AND DIET ALL
HANDS ON DECK. IT'S MUD DURING
STORM RESPONSE, AND THIS ONE WAS
DEFINITELY OUR LARGEST EVER
RESPONSE EFFORT. WE HAD OVER 100
CREWS WORKING IN THE FIELD
AROUND THE CLOCK. WE HAD 39
EXTERNAL CRUISE EITHER CONTRACT
CREWS OR MUTUAL AID FROM OTHER
UTILITIES. THAT'S MORE THAN EVER
BEFORE, AND WE CAN'T THANK THEM
ENOUGH FOR LENDING US A HAND.
WELL WE HAD MORE STAFF THAN EVER
BEFORE. RESTORATION TAKES TIME
AS OTHER SPEAKERS HAVE ELUDED
TO, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU KNOW WE
HAD 1500 OUTAGES, MANY WHICH
REQUIRED TREE WORK BEFORE WE CAN
ASSESS THE DAMAGE TO OUR
ELECTRIC SYSTEM AND REPAIR IT.
SOME JOBS INVOLVED, REPLACING
MULTIPLE POLLS. EACH POLE
REPLACEMENT IS A SIGNIFICANT
CONSTRUCTION JOB, TAKING A CREW
AN AVERAGE OF EIGHT HOURS TO
COMPLETE. WHETHER ALSO HAMPERED
THE EFFORT. IT'S UNSAFE TO PUT
OUR CREWS UP IN A BUCKET WHEN
WINDS EXCEED 40 MPH AND WE SAW
WINDS OVER 70 MPH IN OUR SERVICE
AREA. FOR EXTENDED PERIODS OF
TIME FLOODING AND EVACUATIONS IN
PARTS OF SOUTHERN SACRAMENTO
COUNTY MEANT THAT OUR CREWS
COULDN'T GET ACCESS INTO THE
DAMAGED AREA AND MAKE THE
REPAIRS. POWER OUTAGES ARE NEVER
CONVENIENT, AND WE KNOW THE
LONGER ONES ARE ESPECIALLY
DIFFICULT. WHEN WE KNEW
CUSTOMERS WERE GOING TO BE OUT
OF POWER OVERNIGHT. WE CALLED TO
LET THEM KNOW SO THAT THEY COULD
MAKE ARRANGEMENTS AND WE CALLED
THEM WITH REGULAR UPDATES. WE
WENT TO GREAT LENGTHS TO SUPPORT
THE MOST VULNERABLE IN OUR
COMMUNITY. WE CALLED ALL OF OUR
CUSTOMERS WHO ARE ON A MED RATE
. AND THESE ARE CUSTOMERS. WHO
ARE YOU WITH ESSENTIAL MEDICAL
EQUIPMENT. WE ALSO PROACTIVELY
CALLED CUSTOMERS ON OUR LOW
INCOME ASSISTANT RATE. THESE
INCLUDED CALLS WITH UPDATES ON
OUR ESTIMATED RESTORATION TIMES.
OUR STRATEGIC ACCOUNT ADVISORS
ALSO MADE PROACTIVE CALLS OUR
BUSINESS CUSTOMERS. IN
PARTNERSHIP WITH RALLIES AND THE
SALVATION ARMY. WE DELIVERED
BAGS OF ESSENTIALS, INCLUDING
FOOD, WATER, BLANKETS AND
FLASHLIGHTS TO OUR MOST
VULNERABLE CUSTOMERS. WE ALSO
MADE WELFARE CHECKS TO OUR MED
RATE CUSTOMERS THAT WE WERE NOT
ABLE TO REACH. WHILE MANY OF
THESE CUSTOMERS WANTED TO STAY
IN THEIR HOMES, SOME NEEDED A
LITTLE EXTRA SUPPORT. FOR
EXAMPLE, WE DELIVERED DRY ICE
AND A COOLER TO DIABETIC
CUSTOMER WHO WANTED TO STAY HOME
BUT NEEDED A WAY TO KEEP HER
INSULIN COLD. SAINT JOHN'S
SHELTER FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN
WAS ALSO IMPACTED BY A COMPLEX
POWER OUTAGE THAT INVOLVED
SEVERAL POLLS THAT HAD GONE
DOWN. RECOGNIZING THAT YOU KNOW
, THESE SITUATIONS ARE ALREADY
VERY DIFFICULT FOR THESE
FAMILIES, SMUT ARRANGED HOTEL
ROOMS AND FOOD FOR THESE WOMEN
AND THEIR CHILDREN FOR A NIGHT
WHILE THE DAMAGE WAS REPAIRED
AND POWER WAS RESTORED. IN
CONCLUSION. THE JANUARY STORMS
WERE THE WORST IN SMUTS HISTORY
, AND WE'RE INCREDIBLY GRATEFUL
FOR OUR TIRELESS EMPLOYEES. THE
MUTUAL AID WE RECEIVED FROM
OTHER UTILITIES AND THE
COORDINATION WITH STATE AND
LOCAL EMERGENCY RESPONSE. WHILE
WE'RE STILL ANALYZING ALL THE
WORK OR ALL THE DATA FROM THE
STORM, OUR STAFF AND OUR BOARD
MEMBERS ARE WORKING TO DETERMINE
WHAT STEPS WE CAN TAKE NOW TO
EVEN BETTER BE PREPARED FOR THE
NEXT MAJOR STORM. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, DIRECTOR. AND ON THAT
NOTE, I DO HAVE A QUESTION FOR
YOU. CAN YOU SHARE HOW THE
LESSONS LEARNED FROM PG AND E S
WELFARE AND PUBLIC SAFETY? POWER
SHUT OFF EVENTS HAVE INFLUENCED
YOUR DISASTER RESPONSE.
GENERALLY LESSONS LEARNED, SO TO
SPEAK, SO AS FAR AS OUR SERVICE
AREA, UM WITHIN THE VALLEY. NONE
OF UM NONE OF OUR NEIGHBORHOODS
ARE PART OF THE TIERED STRUCTURE
WITHIN THE STATE. BUT WITH THAT
SAID, UM, WE HAVE YOU KNOW, WE
HAVE REVIEWED PEACH AND EAST
WILDFIRE MITIGATION PLAN LOOKED
AT SOME OF THE TECHNOLOGIES THAT
THEY HAVE EMPLOYED OR ARE
EMPLOYING TO MITIGATE THE RISK
OF WILDFIRES. SO WE'RE LOOKING
INTO POSSIBLY IMPLEMENTING SOME
OF THOSE STRATEGIES WITHIN OUR
SERVICE AREA. YOU HAVE ANY
QUESTION PARTNERS? AND JUST ONE
MORE QUESTION SINCE WE HAVE BOTH
THE P GINNY SMUT HERE. HOW DO
YOU GUYS DESCRIBE YOUR NEW TRADE
RESPONSE THAT WAS CAUGHT UP
HUNDREDS. THEIR INDUSTRY
EMERGENCY WITH THE FLOODS. YOUR
COORDINATION WORKING TOGETHER ON
THESE RESPONSE. UM SMART HAS, UH
, SEVERAL MUTUAL ASSISTANCE
AGREEMENTS WITH WITH DIFFERENT
UTILITIES AND DIFFERENT
ORGANIZATIONS. AND SO, UM,
HAVING THOSE IN PLACE AHEAD OF
TIME. IS REALLY BENEFICIAL
BECAUSE AS WE'RE DOING OUR
EMERGENCY PLANNING AND EMERGENCY
RESPONSE PLANNING ACTIVITIES WE
KNOW YOU KNOW WHO WE COULD. WHO
WOULD BE ABLE TO CALL ON AND WE
COULD, YOU KNOW, REACH OUT TO
THOSE ENTITIES AHEAD OF TIME TO
GIVE THEM A HEADS UP. OKAY THANK
YOU. YES. SO WHAT I WANT TO ADD
IS IT WAS FAIRLY EPIC. IT WAS
FAIRLY WONDERFUL, ACTUALLY, OUR
PUBLIC OUR MUTUAL AID PARTNERS.
WE DO HAVE THE AGREEMENTS IN
PLACE. WE GO THROUGH THE
CALIFORNIA EMERGENCY UTILITIES
ASSOCIATION TO ASSIST US WITHIN
THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA. AND
THEN WE HAVE THE WESTERN
REGIONAL MUTUAL ASSISTANCE
GROUPS OUTSIDE OF CALIFORNIA
THAT WE CAN PULL UP ON. WE WERE
ABLE TO TAP INTO SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA EDISON RESOURCE IS
VERY EARLY ON AND THEY WERE ABLE
TO COME, AND THEY PRE STAGED
WITH OUR CREWS BECAUSE BASED ON
THAT SOUGHT MODEL THAT I WAS
DISCUSSING. WE REALIZED VERY
EARLY THAT WE WERE GOING TO NEED
RESOURCES FROM OUTSIDE OUR OWN
HOME. WE ALSO SAW THAT THERE
WERE SOME SAN DIEGO GAS AND
ELECTRIC INDIVIDUALS THAT HAD
COME UP AND IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN
, TWO ASSISTS, MUD AND AT THE
TIME THAT THEY GOT HERE, AND
THEY WERE ON THEY WERE ON THE
GROUND IN SACRAMENTO. THEY
WEREN'T NEEDED. SO WE PICKED HIM
UP AND WE PUT THEM OVER. I CAN'T
REMEMBER WHO PUT SENT HIM TO
STOCKTON OR SANTA CRUZ. BUT WE
USED THOSE RESOURCES THEY CAME
IN. THEY STAGED WITH OUR FOLKS.
THEY WORKED RIGHT ALONGSIDE OUR
FOLKS AND WE ARE EXTREMELY
GRATEFUL FOR ALL ENTITIES. AND
NOT ONLY DO WE USE MUTUAL AID
CREWS FROM OUTSIDER AREAS. BUT
SOMETIMES THOSE PARTNERS WILL
RELEASE THEIR CONTRACTORS, SO
THEY KEEP CONTRACTORS IN THERE
HIP POCKETS, SO IF THEY HAVE A
STORM, OR IF THEY HAVE AN EVENT,
THEY CAN USE THEM. THEY RELEASED
THEM SO THAT THOSE CONTRACT
CREWS COULD COME TO CALIFORNIA
AND SUPPORT OUR WORK. OKAY GREAT
. GOOD TO KNOW WITH THAT. NO
OTHER QUESTIONS. WE WILL GO
AHEAD AND OUR THIRD AND LAST
PANEL THANK YOU FOR YOUR
PRESENTATIONS AND INFORMATION
AND REALLY APPRECIATE IT AND
WHAT THAT'S NOW WE'LL MOVE ON TO
OUR LAST PORTION WOULD BE OUR
PUBLIC COMMENT. NOT SURE IF YEAH
, YOU CAN JUST LEAVE IT THERE.
WE'LL GET IT FROM ME. WITH THAT
WE'LL GO AHEAD AND PUBLIC
COMMENT ANYONE HERE IN THE
AUDIENCE PUBLIC COMMENTS SO WE
HAVE SOMEONE THERE. GO AHEAD,
SIR. MR CHAIRMAN. GOOD WE HAVE
THE MICROPHONE ON. WE HEARD HIM.
GOOD AFTERNOON, MR CHAIRMAN.
THANK YOU. HAVE FRED VARGAS, UH
, HERE WITH FIRE AND FLOOD
EMERGENCY SERVICES, A VERY
UNIQUE AND SPECIALIZED COMPANY.
UH OUT OF CANADA GOT ITS START
IN THE ENERGY SECTOR WHERE
THEY'RE USED TO USING LARGE
PUMPS LARGE HOSES AND USING
MASSIVE AMOUNTS, MOVING A
MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF WATER AND
DEPLOYING TO FLOODS INTO OTHER
SUCH INCIDENTS HERE. WE WERE THE
COMPANY THAT WAS CALLED OUT FROM
CANADA THAT THE REPRESENTATIVE
OF PGD MENTIONED AND WE'RE
HONORED TO HAVE THEIR TRUST. PG
NEEDS TO BE COMMENDED FOR
THINKING NOT ONLY OUTSIDE OF THE
BOX BUT OUTSIDE OF THE COUNTRY
AND WE WERE ABLE TO BRING 12
TEAM OF 12 TO SERVICE THE AREA
IN SAN CARLOS. AND SET UP 1300
FT OF TIGER DAM FLOOD MITIGATION
BARRIERS, SO THE COMPANY IS VERY
EXCITED TO BE SERVICING IN
CALIFORNIA AND LOOKING FORWARD
TO PARTNERING WITH OTHER PUBLIC
SAFETY ENTITIES AND HAVING
YOURSELF AND ANOTHER COMMITTEE
MEMBERS AND OTHERS TO THEIR
LOCATION IN ZAMORA AT THE
MATCHBOOK WINERY. THANK YOU.
GREAT. THANK YOU APPRECIATE IT.
HAVE SOMEONE ELSE NEXT. MR CHAIR
, REMEMBER? GOOD MORNING. GOOD
AFTERNOON. I SHOULD SAY IT'S
BEEN QUITE A HEARING. I REALLY
APPRECIATE THE COMMITTEE HERE.
HAVING THE HOLDING HEARING TODAY
ON THIS IMPORTANT ISSUE. OUR
AGENCY WAS FORMED BY THE
LEGISLATURE IN RESPONSE TO
CATASTROPHIC FLOODING THAT WAS
CAUSED BY A SERIES OF
ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS IN 1955 THAT
KILLED 40,000,040 PEOPLE IN OUR
IN OUR PART OF CALIFORNIA, AND
FOR DECADES WE'VE WORKED TO
REDUCE FLOOD RISK THROUGH
INVESTMENTS IN WATER MANAGEMENT
AND FLOOD PROTECTION
INFRASTRUCTURE. YOU KNOW, THESE
DAYS WE'RE WORKING WITH THE
SCRIPTS, INSTITUTE AND OTHERS TO
ADVANCE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF
ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS, THEIR
EFFECTS BOTH GOOD IN TERMS OF
WATER SUPPLY AVAILABILITY, BUT
ALSO BAD AND DANGEROUS IN TERMS
OF INCREASED FLOOD RISK, AND AS
WE KNOW OUR CLIMATE EXTREMES ARE
BECOMING INCREASINGLY VOLATILE.
WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE TO
OPERATIONALIZE THOSE INSIGHTS
THAT WERE GAINING FROM THE
SCIENCE. BY REINVESTING AND
RETOOLING OUR EXISTING
INFRASTRUCTURE TO MAKE SURE THAT
IT'S UP TO THE CHALLENGES OF
TOMORROW'S CLIMATE FOR US. WE'RE
DESIGNING AN ATMOSPHERIC RIVER
CONTROL SPILLWAY AT OUR DAM,
WHICH IS THE FIFTH LARGEST IN
THE IN THE COUNTRY. THAT WILL
SIGNIFICANT THAT IMPROVEMENT TO
OUR WILL SIGNIFICANTLY ENHANCE
FLOOD RISK REDUCTION FOR THE
ALMOST 200,000 CALIFORNIANS WHO
LIVE ALONG THE HUMAN FEATHER
RIVERS IN OUR PART OF
CALIFORNIA. BUT IT'S NOT THE
ONLY PROJECT OF ITS KIND. THERE
ARE OTHER DAM SAFETY AND CLIMATE
RESILIENCE PROJECTS PROPOSED BY
LOCAL AGENCIES UP AND DOWN THE
STATE. THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
CAN PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN
MAKING THOSE PROJECTS THAT
REALITY IN THE MULTI YEAR BUDGET
APPROPRIATIONS THAT WERE
ADVANCED AS PART OF LAST YEAR'S
BUDGET. THE LEGISLATURE
COMMITTED TO PROVIDING FUNDING
FOR THOSE YEARS. WE WERE GLAD TO
SEE THAT FUNDING MAINTAINED. UM
IN THE GOVERNOR'S JANUARY BUDGET
PROPOSAL, SO WHETHER IT'S THIS
YEAR'S BUDGET CONVERSATIONS OR
CONVERSATIONS SURROUNDING
POTENTIAL NATURAL RESOURCES AND
FLOOD BONDS WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU
TO KEEP THESE IMPORTANT PROJECTS
IN MIND. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR
YOUR TIME AND THANK YOU FOR
TODAY'S HEARING. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH. ANYONE ELSE IN THE HEARING
ROOM? PUBLIC COMMENT. SEE NONE.
I GUESS WE'LL GO OVER TO OUR
PHONE LINES DON'T KNOW IF
ANYBODY IS ON THE LINE FOR
PUBLIC COMMENT. WE HAVE OPERATOR
AVAILABLE. THANK YOU FOR PUBLIC
COMMENT. YOU MAY PRESS ONE AND
THEN ZERO. IN THAT IS ONE AND
THEN ZERO. YOU'D LIKE THAT
PUBLIC COMMENTS AND WE WILL GO
TO LINE 23. YOUR LINE IS OPEN.
MY NAME IS ALI VALENCIA AND I'M
COMMENTING ON BEHALF OF THE
DELTA CURRENTLY DOCKED IN AREAS
HOME TO 800,000 PEOPLE AND IS
RANKED ONE OF THE MOST OVER
CITIES IN CALIFORNIA. DECADES OF
DISINVESTMENT. THE CITY'S ONLY
DEFENSE AGAINST BLOOD ARE
DECADES OLD, LEAK PRONE LOVE.
THESE FEDERAL STUDIES FIND THAT
THE LEVEES ARE SUBJECT TO BURST
WITH ENOUGH FOR AN OFTEN THE
MOUNTAINS DOWN IN NORTHWEST
ALONG THE SAND WALKING THAT'S
INUNDATING THE CITY WITH 10 TO
24 FT. OF WATER HUMANITARIAN
DISASTER THAT CAN BE JUST AS
CONCERNING AS HURRICANE KATRINA.
THIS PART OF IT INCREASES WITH
CLIMATE CHANGE AND SEA LEVEL
RISE DUE TO INCREASED RAINFALL
AND RUNOFF IN THE SAN JOAQUIN
WATERSHED COMPARED TO THE
SACRAMENTO WATERSHED. ANYTHING
STOPPING STARTING FROM
IMPLEMENTING FLOODPLAIN
RESTORATION PROJECTS AND LET THE
INFRASTRUCTURE IS A LACK OF
SPENDING $40 MILLION CUT LIKE
DEVON AND HOUSTON FROM MULTIPLE
FLOOD PROTECTION PROJECTS LIKE
THE RESTORATION, AND THE MONEY
WAS TO PAY FOR NINE LEFT PAIN RE
CONNECTION PROJECTS THAT WOULD
HELP PROTECT STOCKING UPSTREAM.
WE ALSO SAW THAT FLOOD RISK
EMERGENCY SERVICES ARE NOT
PREPARED TO INFORM FOLKS ON
SWEATING AND WE NEED TO ENGAGE
MORE WITH THIS TOPIC AND ENSURE
THAT URGENT INFORMATION IS
REACHING FOLKS IN RURAL AREAS
AND ADDRESSING LANGUAGE BARRIERS
AS WELL AS PROVIDE LIVE
INFORMATION ON ROAD CLOSURES,
FREEWAYS AND SO MUCH MORE.
THERE'S A DISCONNECT HERE. A LOT
OF THE COMMUNITY IN MY IN MY
COMMUNITY WHERE YOU'RE TAKING ME
OUT FOR HELP FOR ME TO TAKE CARE
OF BLOOD RELATED DAMAGES. UM AND
THAT'S NOT PARTICULARLY IN MY
AREA. DO DEAL WITH BLOOD, BUT
NOT WITH EMERGENCY SERVICES. SO
I HAD TO STEP IN AND REALLY
LEARN HOW THAT WORKS. BUT I
THINK THERE IS A DISCONNECT WITH
THE COMMUNITY HERE AND WE NEED
TO IMPROVE THE COMMUNICATIONS
WITHIN THESE SPACES. PEOPLE
STILL DON'T KNOW HOW TO EVACUATE
OR WHAT PETER'S ARE OR EVEN
SIMPLE FLOOD PREPAREDNESS. YOU
KNOW, WE'RE NOT PREPARED, AND
WE'VE ALSO HAD ISSUES WITH
PROTECTING AND SHELTERING OUR
OWN HOUSE POPULATIONS HERE. AND
YOU KNOW THEY WERE INCHES FROM
BEING FLOODED AS THEY RESIDE
NEAR THE LEVEES OF OUR TOWN, AND
THIS IS WHERE THEY HAVE BEEN
PUSHED TO, AND THERE'S BEEN NO
ACTION TO PROTECT THEM. THANK
YOU FOR YOUR TIME, AND I HOPE
THAT YOU CONSIDER MY COMMENTS TO
FURTHER IMPLEMENT BETTER
TELECOMMUNICATIONS, SOCIAL MEDIA
OR IN PERSON TO GET THIS
INFORMATION AND HAVE IT
ACCESSIBLE TO THESE PEOPLE SO
THAT THEY ARE PREPARED AND
KNOWLEDGEABLE TO HANDLE THIS
SITUATION. THE NEXT TIME IT
COMES, THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH. GO ON TO THE NEXT PERSON
IF WE HAVE SOMEBODY THANK YOU.
LINE 22. YOUR LINE IS OPEN. GOOD
MORNING. SHARON MEMBERS MARTIN
RADOSEVIC, REPRESENTING SANTA
CLARA VALLEY WATER DISTRICT,
ALSO KNOWN AS VALLEY WATER,
WHERE THE REGIONAL WATER SUPPLY
AND FLOOD MANAGEMENT AND STREET
STEWARDSHIP AGENCY FOR SANTA
CLARA COUNTY. UM BACK IN JANUARY
AND FEBRUARY OF 2017. THERE WAS
A SERIES OF ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS
AND STORMS THAT SATURATED BAY
AREA VALLEY WATER RESERVOIRS
STILLED AND STILL DOES. THEY
WERE DESIGNED TO DO, HOWEVER,
ANDERSON DAM, WHICH IS OUR
LARGEST RESERVOIR IN SANTA CLARA
COUNTY, HAS A REALLY SMALL
OUTLET THAT IMPACTS THE ABILITY
TO RAPIDLY DRAW DOWN ON THE
GROUND ROCK DRIVE DOWN THE
WEATHER RESERVOIR. UM WITH THE
GROUND SATURATED AND THE
ADDITIONAL RAIN FLOWED THROUGH
THE WATERSHEDS UNCHECKED,
FLOODED PARTS OF SAN JOSE
DISPLACED 14,000 RESIDENTS AND
IMPACTED MOSTLY DISADVANTAGED
COMMUNITIES AT ALSO CAUSED ABOUT
$75 MILLION AND DAMAGED HOMES
AND BUSINESSES. DUE TO THIS NEW
NORMAL VALLEY WATER NEEDS A
LARGER DAM OUTLET. THAT'S
SEISMICALLY RETROFITTED. WE'RE
CURRENTLY WORKING ON THAT. UH
AND TO RESPOND TO THESE
CHALLENGES CAUSED BY THESE
ATMOSPHERIC FLOODS. UH WE REALLY
URGED THE LEGISLATURE TO INVEST
MORE IN DAM SAFETY AND FLOOD
PROTECTION STATEWIDE. THANK YOU
SO MUCH FOR EVERYTHING YOU'RE
DOING, AND WE'LL SEND MORE
DETAILED COMMENTS AS WELL. THANK
YOU VERY MUCH WANT TO THE NEXT
PERSON IF WE HAVE SOME OPERATOR
QUÊ LINE 19. YOUR LINE IS OPEN.
HELLO MY NAME IS JOHN KANE. I AM
THE SENIOR CONSERVATION DIRECTOR
AT RIVER PARTNERS. RIVER
PARTNERS IS A CONSERVATION
GROUPS THAT RESTORES FLOODPLAINS
AND EXPANDS FLOOD WAYS ALONG
CALIFORNIA'S RIVERS AND AS
PRESIDENT DOLAN OF THE FLOOD
BOARD SAID THIS EXPANDING FLOOD
WAVES WILL BE NECESSARY TO
ACCOMMODATE THE BIGGER FLOODS.
THAT WE CAN EXPECT WITH CLIMATE
CHANGE. AND I JUST WANTED TO
POINT OUT THAT IT'S REITERATE
THAT EXPANDING SIDEWAYS HAS
MULTIPLE BENEFITS. INCLUDING
SIGNIFICANT WATER SUPPLY
BENEFITS. ARE RESTORED HABITAT,
UM RESTORED VEGETATION ON THE
FLOODPLAINS USES SIGNIFICANTLY
LESS WATER THAN IRRIGATED CROPS.
UM ON MARGINAL CLUB PLANES. AND,
UM. CREATES THE OPPORTUNITIES
FOR GROUNDWATER RECHARGE AND
VERY IMPORTANTLY, CREATES THE
OPPORTUNITY FOR MORE FLEXIBLE
OPERATION OF UPSTREAM
RESERVOIRS. PREVIOUS SPEAKER
FROM SANTA CLERIC COUNTY WATER
DISTRICT TALKED ABOUT THE NEED
TO INCREASE RESERVOIR OUTLETS.
CAPACITY YOU CAN'T DO THAT
UNLESS YOU HAVE EXPANDED FLOOD
WAYS, AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT
RIVER PARTNERS IS WORKING ON IN
CONJUNCTION WITH MANY STATE
AGENCIES WERE VERY GRATEFUL FOR
STATE REPORT SUPPORT. LAST YEAR,
THE LEGISLATURE ACTUALLY UH,
ALLOCATED $40 MILLION TO THE
WILDLIFE CONSERVATION BOARD FOR
PROJECTS IN THE SAN JOAQUIN
VALLEY. AND UNFORTUNATELY THAT
GOVERNORS INITIAL BUDGET HAS CUT
THAT OUT. AND WE HOPE THAT YOU
CAN RESTORE THAT FUNDING.
LASTLY, I JUST WANT TO BUT YOU
KNOW THAT WE ARE HAVING FIELD
TRIPS, UH, IN THE SOUTHPORT
PROJECT AND AT THE DUST RAILS
PROJECT IN MODESTO, AND WE'LL BE
LOOKING TO INVITE YOU ALL AND
YOUR STAFF TO COME SEE WHAT
MULTI BENEFITS, FLOODPLAIN
RESTORATION PROJECTS LOOK LIKE,
THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH
OPERATIVE. GO ONTO THE NEXT ONE.
WE HAVE SOMEBODY. YOU AND WE
HAVE NO FURTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS
AND QUÊ. OKAY. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH. SO THAT'S IT. ANY COMMENTS
? QUESTIONS MEMBERS GOOD.
CARLOS. REMEMBER THAT? THANK
YOU, MR CHAIRMAN. COMMENT UM I
KNOW THERE WAS IT WAS KIND OF IN
AND OUT, BUT I WAS LISTENING IN
MY OFFICE. AND WHAT I HEAR A LOT
WAS YOU KNOW? WORSE THAN
HISTORY, LARGEST EVER. UM YOU
KNOW? AND I HATE TO SAY THAT YOU
KNOW, WE WE'VE BEEN DOWN THIS
ROAD BEFORE, BUT I DON'T KNOW IF
THIS IS GOING TO BE OUR WE ARE
GOING TO BE FACING THAT WE
HAVEN'T SEEN THE WORST YET,
RIGHT? AND THEN WE IN MY IN MY
DISTRICT, UM NUMEROUS STUDIES
HAVE POINTED OUT THAT THE
CENTRAL VALLEY AND MY DISTRICT
YOU HEARD SOMEONE JUST TALK
ABOUT YOU KNOW, THE DELTA,
PARTICULARLY ONE IS ONE OF THE
MOST REGIONS IN THE NATION THAT
WILL SEE CATASTROPHIC FLOODING.
UM SOME OF THE QUESTIONS I HAD.
I DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO ASK. BUT
HOW HAS CALIFORNIA HISTORICALLY
INVESTED IN FLOOD INFRASTRUCTURE
AND WHERE HAVE WE UNDER AND
WHERE HAVE WE UNDER INVESTED IN
AREAS. AND WHAT ARE THE HIGH
RISK? I MEAN, I OBVIOUSLY YOU'VE
HEARD. I'M I'M TRYING TO PUSH
FOR, UH, FLOOD BOND. BUT I'M
JUST TRYING TO FIGURE OUT LIKE
WHAT ARE THE FUTURE. HOW TO BE.
HOW DO WE PREVENT THIS FROM OUR
YOU KNOW, FUTURE FLOODS COMING?
HOW DO WE REINVEST? WHERE SHOULD
WE REINVEST? WE HAD A LOT OF
EXPERTS COME UP AND SPEAK. YOU
KNOW, AND I JUST DON'T THINK
THAT THE WORST IS OVER. AND NOT
EVEN SAYING THAT, BUT WE NEED TO
PREPARE. FOR THE WORST ASSUME
THAT THE WORST IS GOING TO COME.
AND YOU'VE SEEN CITIES SHUT
DOWN. YOU'RE SEEING PEOPLE OUT
OF OUT OF OUT OF OUT OF POWER.
BUT I THINK THAT AND I'M GLAD
YOU KNOW THERE. OUR OUR LOCAL.
OH YES. I GOTTA GIVE THEM CREDIT
. THEY DID A LOT OF WORK THAT
WERE INVESTED IN OUR IN OUR
COMMUNITY. I WAS ON SEVERAL
CALLS WITH THEM. UM AND THEY'RE
DOING THE BEST THAT THEY CAN,
BUT I THINK THAT AT THE END OF
THE DAY. YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO
FIGURE OUT HOW WE DO BETTER, YOU
KNOW? I MEAN, IT JUST SEEMS THAT
WE'RE ALWAYS FOLLOWING THE SAME
FOOTSTEPS AND NOT REALLY GETTING
THINGS DONE. AND WE SHOULD WE
NEED TO INVEST. IN SIX MONTHS.
WE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT FIRES,
RIGHT? BUT THEN WE WERE BACK
HERE TALKING ABOUT FLOODS. IT'S
JUST SOMETHING THAT WE KEEP
GOING AROUND IN CIRCLES. SO
THANK YOU, MISTER. THANKS FOR
VERY MUCH. SIMPLY REMEMBER NOTES
OR WHAT? WELL TAKEN. OBVIOUSLY I
LOOK AT THIS AS A AS I SAID
EARLIER. THIS IS A DISASTER
PRONE STATE. RIGHT WE'RE GONNA
HAVE SOME TYPE OF DISASTER.
WHETHER IT'S THE FIRES THE
FLOODS, AND MY BIGGEST THING IS
THE EARTHQUAKE, RIGHT? AND WE
HAVE THE EARTHQUAKE DURING THE
MIDDLE OF THE FLOODS WITH THEIR
HAPPENING. LEVIES ARE PROBABLY
GONNA BREAK TALK ABOUT FLOODING
, BUT THAT'S GOING TO DO TO OUR
INFRASTRUCTURE, OUR ROADS OR
HIGHWAYS AND MAYBE EVEN
HOSPITALS. RIGHT? SO I THINK WE
NEED TO START ADVOCATING MORE
THROUGH THE BUDGET OF THE
GOVERNOR AND OTHERS TO OUT START
ALLOCATING MORE FUNDING. TO
START, YOU KNOW, BUILDING THE
RESOURCES AND THE PERSONNEL AND
THE INFRASTRUCTURE. IN CASE WE
HAVE THOSE DISASTERS. I MEAN,
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THEM. I
SHOULDN'T SAY IN CASE WE'RE
GOING TO HAVE FORTUNATELY,
EARTHQUAKES, THEY'RE GOING TO BE
UNPREDICTABLE THAT I MEAN THE
FIRES THE FLOODS. WE KIND OF SEE
WHEN IT'S COMING, RIGHT. THE
WEATHER THE CLIMATE, ALL THAT
KIND OF TELLING US, BUT
EARTHQUAKES DON'T REALLY GIVE US
NO WARNING. IT'S JUST GONNA
HAPPEN WHETHER IT'S DOWN HERE UP
HERE OR DOWN IN THE SOUTHERN
PART OF THE STATE, BUT HOW DO WE
START PUTTING MORE MONEY ASIDE?
TO THESE OTHER PLANNERS. THESE
DIRECTORS OH, YES, CAL FIRE AND
OTHERS TO GET THE RESOURCES OUT
THERE THE BOOTS ON THE GROUND,
SO TO SPEAK, BECAUSE IT'S GOING
TO HAPPEN AND I LOOK AT IT AS
LIKE AN INSURANCE POLICY. WE BUY
INSURANCE ON OUR HOUSES, OUR
CARS RIGHT IN CASE SOMETHING BAD
HAPPENS. WE HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF
US. WE NEED TO LOOK AT
CALIFORNIA THAT WAY AN INSURANCE
POLICY TO ADVOCATING MORE
FUNDING TO THESE RESOURCES THEY
HAVE. HOPEFULLY WE NEVER HAVE TO
REASON. BUT IF WE DO WE HAVE THE
PREPOSITION. WE HAVE THE
FUNDING. WE HAVE. STAFF,
EVERYBODY AVAILABLE THROUGHOUT
THE STATE AND RESPONDED THESE
DISASTERS AND REALLY CALIFORNIA
BEING A ROLE MODEL TO PROVIDE
DISASTER RESPONSE AND PLANNING,
MOVING FORWARD SO THAT THAT IS
VERY INFORMATIVE HEARING THANKS
EVERYBODY FOR ATTENDING WHETHER
IN PERSON OR VIA VIDEO, A LOT OF
LESSONS LEARNED WILL CONTINUE TO
MAKE CALIFORNIA BETTER BY HAVING
THESE TYPES OF HEARINGS AND MAKE
GETTING US TO A BETTER PLACE
WITH THAT THIS MEETING IS
ADJOURNED. THANK YOU.