After torrential weekend rain, Menlo-Atherton flooded yet again. Around the Bay Area, officials closed off sections of roads and highways to prevent severe damage to vehicles and passengers.
The National Weather Service put out a flood advisory for most of San Mateo County advising, “Turn around, don’t drown.”
At M-A, pools of water one to two inches deep covered parts of the parking lot and the Senior Grove on Sunday morning. The entrance to the PAC had close to two inches of water pushing against the glass doors, which appeared sealed.
Notably, the intersection of Middlefield and Ravenswood was almost entirely flooded at 10 a.m. on Sunday. Cars trying to turn left off of Ravenswood were forced to make a U-turn and head back toward El Camino Real.
According to PG&E, only a few buildings in Menlo Park, Atherton, and East Palo Alto are currently experiencing power outages due to the storms.
M-A also flooded during winter break. Since this rain is expected to continue, flooding might cause problems for students, including juniors who are taking their CAASPP tests this week.
National Weather Service forecaster Ryan Walbrun said, “The next main event is the atmospheric river coming in Monday after midnight.”
The heavy rain starting last week and lasting through the weekend is part of an atmospheric river carrying massive amounts of water from the Pacific Ocean.
Flooding was so severe throughout the greater Bay Area that it destroyed a levee in Monterey Country, which forced over 1,000 residents to evacuate, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Sonoma County, in the North Bay, weathered the worst of Sunday’s storm cycle, receiving more than three inches of rain Sunday morning.
