Mandatory Evacuations Expanded, City Under Red Flag Alert
By John Stephens
Published: Wednesday, January 20th, 2010
Heavy rain is expected to continue through Thursday and possibly into Friday. - Image Courtesy Wunderground.com
The City of Sierra Madre has expanded the Mandatory Evacuation Order first issued this morning at 8:00 a.m. to cover the entire Upper canyon areas and the entire Lower canyon areas. The city has also said that additional locations for Mandatory Evacuation Orders are possible within the next 48 hours as record amounts of rainfall continue to threaten fire damaged hillsides.
Following the successful evacuation of residents in the mandatory evacuation areas, roads leading into those areas will be closed. According to the city, these closures will be strictly enforced by the Sierra Madre Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department.
“The cooperation of our residents is crucial to the safety and protection of life and property in these areas,” said a recent post on the city’s Emergency Blog.
Public safety and city officials are urging city residents to follow evacuation orders, saying that residents who choose to ignore evacuation orders and stay in their homes threaten themselves, their neighbors, and emergency personnel.
The City has requested mutual aid from surrounding agencies including the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department.
An emergency meeting of the Sierra Madre City Council will be held this evening at 5:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at City Hall. The Council will be considering a Declaration of a Local Emergency at this time. According to city staff, such a declaration would allow Sierra Madre to better recover costs associated with the emergency. The declaration will also help Sierra Madre’s efforts in garnering help from surrounding cities and agencies in coordinating mutual aid.
Additional Important Information from the city:
o The City has opened the Community Recreation Center at 611 E. Sierra Madre Blvd. as an evacuation location. Crated animals will be allowed.
o The City will operate a shuttle to from Mt. Wilson Trail Park (“Turtle Park”) to the Community Recreation /Center from 11:00AM to 1:00PM this afternoon.
o Sand and sandbags are available 24 hours a day at the City Maintenance Facility. The address is 621 E. Sierra Madre Blvd. The sand and sandbags are located north of the Sierra Vista Park tennis courts, and next to the Sierra Madre Rose Float building. Residents must fill their own bags and are advised to bring a shovel.
o Bailey Canyon Park, Mt. Wilson Trail, and Chantry Road are all closed until further notice.
The City of Sierra Madre is appreciative of the diligent preparations and friendly cooperation that its residents have demonstrated through all of our recent emergencies.
For updates and future emergency information, please be sure to monitor the City’s Communication tools:
City Website (www.cityofsierramadre.com)
SMTV3, (channel 3 on Time Warner Cable)
Sierra Madre Emergency Blog (www.sierramadrepio.blogspot.com.)
Email Alerts “eBlasts” – To register for email alerts please visit www.cityofsierramadre.com, click on AccessSierraMadre, and then click CommunicationLink to register your email address.
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