Ventura County Firefighters brace for powerful storms

VENTURA COUNTY, Calif.—Laurie Bennett’s backyard burned in the mountain fire last year, but now she’s bracing for potential flooding.

“When it rains, whether we had, you know, fire or not, the water pools down here. And then inundates the driveway. So going to try to mitigate that,” said Laurie Bennett.

The Ventura County Fire Department says parts of the county like Ojai may see up to 12 inches of rain.

“One of the things that we can see sometimes is that drainage systems can become overwhelmed. We can see drainage systems that get clogged. And so even areas that may not be typical to see flooding, we might see roadways or other areas flooded because of the volume of rain and how quickly. So it's really important that everybody in our community has a plan and is prepared for what to do. In the case of flooding,” said Ventura County Fire Spokesman Andrew Dowd.

 Ventura County Fire has staffed an additional 50 firefighters, and they have a swift water team on standby.
 
The Oxnard Fire Department also has a swift water rescue team ready.
 
“It's very important to not cross waterways that may be flooded. Six inches of moving water can knock a person off their feet, and 12in of water can sweep away a car,” said Dowd.
 
It’s not just water that’s an issue. strong winds can knock down trees and even power lines.

“If you see power lines down, stay away and call 911. Even though those power lines may not be energized, they can re-energize at any time,” said Dowd.

An extra aviation unit, dispatchers, two hand crews, and heavy equipment operators with bulldozers have been put in place.

For more information regarding emergency updates visit www.vcemergency.com