A break amid strong water year in the North State

Feb. 22--At the end of the week Shasta County residents may see a brief pause in an otherwise active rainy season, but flooding will continue to pose a threat for many low-lying areas along the Sacramento River and near other tributaries.

Thursday night will see a 30 percent chance of snow showers in the Redding area, but don't expect much snow on the ground as little or no snow accumulation is expected by early Friday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

But flooding remains a concern along the Sacramento River as the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation began upping its release of water from Shasta Dam into the Sacramento River again on Tuesday afternoon.

By Wednesday afternoon, river flows are expected to reach between 64,000 to 75,000 cubic feet per second with the possibility of increases to 79,000 cfs. Some Redding-area property owners and businesses near the river experienced water in their yards and flooding last week when the bureau kept the releases at 79,000 cfs.

Water from runoff and tributaries was flowing into Lake Shasta on Tuesday at a rate of 94,000 cfs. The Shasta County Sheriff's Office said this week's river flow increases are necessary to create adequate water storage in the lake before more storms arrive.

Sheriff's Office officials say safety is a priority and people need to be cautious and stay a safe distance away from flood areas, especially when taking photos. The level of the Sacramento River can rise rapidly and can cover areas and roads where only minutes before it was dry.

A flood warning issued by the National Weather Service in Sacramento over the weekend stretches from Yolo County to Shasta County. The warning is scheduled to remain in place through Thursday, but could be canceled sooner.

The amount of water coming out of Shasta Dam also has affected water levels in Whiskeytown Lake this week, said Jim Milestone, superintendent at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area.

Because so much water was being released from Shasta Dam into Keswick Reservoir, the amount of water coming from Whiskeytown Lake through the Spring Creek tunnel to Keswick had to be dialed back, he said.

Cutting back flows through the Spring Creek tunnel raised the elevation of Whiskeytown Lake to the point where water began flowing into the Glory Hole near Whiskeytown Dam. The Glory Hole acts as an emergency spillway that prevents water from going over Whiskeytown Dam and allows water to flow through a tunnel beneath the dam and into Clear Creek downstream.

Along the river trails, the city of Redding has seen around $200,000 in storm damages due to the high river flows and output from Shasta and Keswick dams. After the high flows receded last week, the city began to clear debris from trails, but it anticipates high river flows again this week, so there were no long-term fixes.

Parks and facilities manager Adam Whelen said staff has also been dealing with erosion, the safety of bridge abutments and benches and tables being washed down stream.

"My staff has been working diligently to keep the public safe," he said.

Meanwhile, parts of Anderson River Park, including the soccer fields, may reopen Tuesday after widespread flooding due to rain the previous week left some damage, said Jeff Kiser, Anderson's city manager.

"It stayed full of water all week," he said.

Even as high releases from Shasta Dam swelled the Sacramento River, its waters didn't touch parts of the park, Kiser said.

The soccer fields, Shasta Wildlife Refuge and the water treatment plant were not affected by recent flooding, which reached a high point Feb. 14, Kiser said. He said he hopes to reopen the soccer fields and some of the relatively dry playgrounds Wednesday.

"We want to return the park (to its prior state) as soon as we can," Kiser said, cautioning that higher river flows may necessitate additional closures. The Bureau of Reclamation has said it intends to hike releases after the latest series of storms passes.

But additional cleanup will be needed for other parts of the park. He didn't have an estimate on damages.

Several large storm systems have visited the North State during the water year, which began Oct. 1. Redding has received 37.41 inches of rain so far, about 14 inches above the average. Since the first of the calendar year, Redding received 18.68 inches, about 9 inches above the average.

In an average year, the National Weather Service records five to seven large storm systems in Northern California, but so far this year about a dozen atmospheric river systems have been registered.

"This winter has been unusual," said meteorologist Chris Hintz of the National Weather Service.

"Early in January there were several big precipitation producers back to back and that was when we saw significant flooding."

Another storm system is expected to arrive by the weekend, bringing showers that may linger into Monday.

In Tehama County, an evacuation center remains open at Los Molinos High School for residents displaced by flooding in the Wilson area.

Nine evacuees remained at the shelter because the residents from the Woodson area still didn't have electricity, according to Lt. Yvette Borden of the Tehama County Sheriff's Office. About 100 residents were affected by the recent storms that hit Tehama County, but that number could rise if additional flooding occurs.

Record Searchlight reporters Damon Arthur and Joe Szydlowski contributed to this report.

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