Several residents and business owners in San Francisco spent Thursday stocking up on sandbags and installing flood barriers where possible.
The city’s department of public works was busy all day and even extended their hours.
The station is usually open until 2 p.m. but they stayed open until 5 p.m. and a spokesperson said they may do the same Friday if they need to.
Crews loaded up to 10 free sandbags per household. For James Howell, it was his first time picking some up.
“I have a back door where there’s a slope up on top and the water runs downhill and it tends to get through that back door even though I’ve got a seal on the bottom,” he said.
Across San Francisco, residents have already been putting out their sandbags ahead of any major soaking.
That was most obvious at Folsom and 17th streets which is one of the most flood prone spots in the city.
The Department of Public Works delivered and partially assembled the heavy-duty flood barrier, with gaps to allow customers and residents access.
But if there’s any pooling from the continued rains, the orange segments will be installed to seal it off.
At Howell’s place near Twin Peaks, he’s kind enough to share his plan to keep things safe and dry.
He said he clears drainage out once every two years, but the problem is that debris gets washed down from the hill behind his building and stops up the storm drain.
So, he’s picked up the sandbags to seal off the back door just in case that happens.
His tenant, Joon Chew, says December’s torrential storm made a mess because the drain got clogged up. Now, months later, he’s on alert again.
“We’re keeping, keeping our eyes open. Making sure we don’t have anything else that will cause anymore,” said Chew. “I think tonight or tomorrow I’ll have to take a look again and see if there’s anything wrong.”
Once again, he’s battening down the hatches for the coming storm.
Some people who pulled into the sandbag station earlier said they’re not yet convinced this series of rainy days is going to be as bad as what we’ve already seen this season, but they all agreed it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Source: NBC Bay Area
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