Ventura County authorities issue evacuation warnings due to potential flooding

UPDATE: Authorities on Thursday morning issued an evacuation order for residences in the Hueneme Bay Club area in Port Hueneme, where firefighters rescued residents shortly after 3 a.m. after heavy rain inundated the Oxnard and Port Hueneme areas. The downpour flooded roads and launched hundreds of firefighter responses.

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ORIGINAL STORY:

Ventura County authorities issued evacuation warnings and advisories, urging residents to prepare for flooding as rain moved into the area early Wednesday.

The peak of the storm — the second one this week — was expected to hit local areas late Wednesday afternoon and into early Thursday. The National Weather Service had issued a flood advisory for much of the county and region.

Rainfall totals through Friday could reach 2 to 5 inches in coastal and valley areas. Some foothill and mountain spots could see 5 to 10 inches of rain.

The heaviest rain drenched western parts of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties by early Wednesday afternoon, said Rich Thompson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard. It was expected to move into Ventura County and then Los Angeles County later in the afternoon and overnight.

“We’re still on track for a lot of rain,” Thompson said. “Along with the rain, we still have a chance of thunderstorms thrown in there, too.”

The Ventura County Sheriff's Office of Emergency Services issued evacuation warnings for residents in the following neighborhoods. The warnings took effect at 9 a.m Wednesday.

• Residents in the Foster Park neighborhood near Camp Chaffee Road. Debris built up along a stretch of Coyote Creek near Camp Chaffee as the county got pummeled by storms last winter.

• Several homes in the area of the 700 block of Grada and Trueno avenues near Camarillo. The spot is affected because of a compromised storm drain.

A warning means people should be prepared to leave, but the threat is not yet imminent. The agency recommends residents pay close attention to the possibility of rapidly changing conditions, OES Director Patrick Maynard said.

"We recommend that they prepare to evacuate the area on a moment's notice," he said. "Anyone with any type of access or functional needs is also highly encouraged to reach out to family and friends and make plans to get out ahead of the storm."

The county also issued an advisory for residents in Matilija Canyon, North Fork, Creek Road and Old Creek Road because of the possibility of flooding during high intensity rainfall.

Authorities urged anyone in the river bottoms to move to higher ground. They were monitoring the Ventura Beach RV Resort near the Ventura River in case of any flooding.

As of 8 a.m. Wednesday, most local areas had received around a third to three-quarters of an inch of rainfall over the past few days. Ojai, Upper Ojai and Casitas Dam weather stations recorded more than an inch of rain, according to preliminary figures from the Ventura County Watershed Protection District. Matilija Canyon received 2.6 inches.

To sign up for emergency alerts in Ventura County, go to readyventuracounty.org/vc-alert. For information about the storm, evacuation warnings and potential road closures, go to vcemergency.com.

This story may be updated.

Cheri Carlson covers the environment and county government for the Ventura County Star. Reach her at cheri.carlson@vcstar.com or 805-437-0260.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Ventura County issues evacuation warnings issued due to storm