Mudslide
Ravages California
Town
By Sondra Mendelson
Weeks of record
rainfall in California
led to a tragic mudslide in the seaside hamlet of La Conchita, California
on January 10, 2005. Thirty feet of mud covered four blocks of
homes. La Conchita is located in Ventura
County; approximately
seventy miles
north of Los Angeles.
Ten people were
killed as the rain-soaked hills collapsed
and slide down onto the town of La Conchita. Three of the people killed were from the same
family, the Wallets. The mother and two
her
three children were found dead in their collapsed home.
First responders had to restrain the father,
Jimmie Wallet, several times as he tried to make his way towards his
collapsed
home.
Hundreds of rescue
workers on the scene of the mudslide saved
dozens of people from collapsed homes. Several of the individuals
rescued were
located with the aid of listening devices such as sensitive microphones
and
fiber optic cameras.
In La Conchita, 15
homes were destroyed and 16 others were
damaged. The mudslide was caused by the
record rainfall that has hit Southern California
this
winter, 22 inches so far this season, which is about 7 inches about
average. Residents of the damaged or
destroyed homes
were only allowed to return to their homes briefly after the mudslide
to gather
personal affects.
On January 12, 2005,
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency
during
a visit to the community of La Conchita. The
declaration made Ventura County
eligible to apply for state funding to help recover from the storm
damage. State funding includes monies
designated for activities
such as; emergency response efforts, debris removal, repairs to damaged
roads,
restoring flooded sewage treatment systems and repair other government
facilities damaged by the storms. Additionally,
the declaration allows the County to obtain
federal
funding from the Federal Highway Administration for other road repairs. During his visit, the governor also praised
the work of emergency responders and emergency management personnel
from local
and state agencies working to minimize the impacts of the storms on
Californians.
In Ventura
County
alone emergency storm repairs to damaged roads and bridges have cost
upwards of
$13 million. Additionally, the storm
resulted in approximately $30 million in storm damage repairs in the
counties
surrounding Ventura,
including Los Angeles and Santa
Barbara
counties.
Flooding in other parts of California
has claimed nine additional lives. The
storms, which resulted in large snowfall accumulations in the
mountainous regions,
left 200 motorists stranded in the San Bernardino Mountains,
while more than 18,000 residents of Los Angeles
were left without power.
Sources:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4163759.stm
http://www.governor.ca.gov/state/govsite/gov_htmldisplay.jsp?sCatTitle=%20&sFilePath=/govsite/spotlight/011205b_update.htm
http://author.voanews.com/english/2005-01-12-voa65.cfm
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/la-me-roads25jan25,1,1218975.story?ctrack=1&cset=true