The first heavy storm of the season this past weekend saw heavy rains and winds with gusts approaching 60 mph hit the Los Altos area, leaving a slew of fallen trees and power outages in its path. There were no reports of injuries.
Rain is forecasted for today, but the weather is expected to be relatively mild compared to Sunday’s raging storm.
Hundreds of households in Los Altos went without power Sunday as high winds toppled trees and powerlines. As of Monday, 690 Los Altos, 470 Los Altos Hills and 510 Mountain View households were still without power.
Los Altos Police Chief Angela Averiett reported 27 weather-related calls in the city during the big storm, 11 of those regarding downed power lines and wires, and 16 calls regarding downed trees.
“Although our patrol and maintenance services people had their hands full for a few hours, it wasn’t as bad as it could have been,” Averiett said Monday. “We did have a tree fall onto a house but thank goodness no one was injured.”
In Mountain View, the city’s fire department reported 6,377 households without power Sunday. Sunday’s totals in Mountain View included nine calls for wires down, nine medical emergencies, seven traffic collisions, two fire alarms and one for people stuck in an elevator.
In Los Altos Hills, Public Works Director Woojae Kim reported two oaks down last Wednesday, five more trees down Sunday and another Monday morning. There were no reports of flooding.
As a precursor to that storm, steady rain last Thursday led to the first large tree fall of 2024. A large Monterey pine dropped across Camellia Way in Los Altos.
The tree, which knocked out power lines and damaged a water main, left 869 households without power, according to PG&E. However, all but 25 had power restored within an hour.
The remaining households were “re-energized” by 9 p.m. Feb. 1, noted PG&E spokeswoman Stephanie Magallon.
California Water Company crews repaired the water main, ensuring minimal disruption. It took crews 4-5 hours to make the repairs.
“We were able to turn valves on the water main nearby to significantly reduce the amount of water leaking but still maintain positive water pressure within the main, so that we prevent potential water quality issues as a result of the break,” said Cal Water spokeswoman Yvonne Kingman. The valve adjustment was an interim measure, Kingman said, until Cal Water crews were cleared by first responders to safety enter the area to make repairs.
Magallon noted the saturated ground from steady rains, along with strong winds, will create conditions for more fallen trees ahead. She offered the following safety tips:
• If a power line comes in contact with your car, stay inside. The safest place is in your car. The ground around your car may be energized. Honk the horn, roll down your window and yell for help. Warn others to stay away. Anyone who touches the equipment or ground around the vehicle may be injured. Use your mobile phone to call 911. The fire department, police and PG&E workers will tell you when it is safe to get out of the vehicle.
• Never touch downed wires: If you see a downed power line, assume it is energized and extremely dangerous. Do not touch or try to move it – and keep children and animals away. Report downed power lines immediately by calling 911 and by calling PG&E at (800) 743-5002.
Town Crier reporter Christina Casillas contributed to this story.
