LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – On Wednesday hundreds of people remained evacuated from their homes due to Clear Lake’s waters rising still higher and more storms in the weekend forecast.
In Lakeport, an evacuation order issued Monday for residents of the Willopoint, Aqua Village and Lucky Four trailer parks and the Esplanade Street neighborhood remained in effect, with evacuations urged by the sheriff’s office for low-lying areas of Clearlake Oaks and the Clear Lake Keys, and near Lakeport in Corinthian Bay and Lands End.
The water continues to be high in and around Lakeport’s evacuated neighborhoods and areas where residents have been urged to leave.
Neighborhoods in Clearlake Oaks, particularly the Clear Lake Keys, were inundated by lake water, with many streets barely passable and the lake lapping around home foundations.
In Lucerne, parks have been inundated, with lake debris washing up on sidewalks and walkways.
Along Highway 20, new, minor mudslides had occurred, and in one area near Lucerne the lake was lapping at the edge of the highway.
An evacuation shelter remains in place at the Lakeport Seventh-day Adventist Church on Park Way, which also is serving as the community’s winter warming center for the homeless.
The Lake Ministerial Association, which runs the warming center, reported Wednesday evening that it had aided 149 flood evacuees in the previous 24 hours.
Sheriff Brian Martin also announced on Wednesday that he had declared a state of emergency due to the widespread damage the county has suffered from the recent storms and the resulting flooding.
Lake County remains under a general flood warning issued by the National Weather Service.
Early Thursday, the lake’s elevation had risen to 10.58 feet Rumsey, while the Cache Creek Dam continued high-volume releases at nearly 5,100 cubic feet per second.
The California Nevada River Forecast Center expects Clear Lake’s elevation will crest at 10.6 feet Thursday before it starts to recede.
The lake’s current elevation is at a 19-year high, according to county records.
On Wednesday, a pattern of weird weather moved over Lake County, with reports of hail and snow flurries in lower elevations, snow in Cobb, and scattered rain.
By the evening, some blue sky had broken through before clouds again began to close in.
Looking ahead, Lake County is forecast to get a few days of mostly dry weather before several more days of rain arrive.
The National Weather Service’s updated forecast for Lake County expects colder weather and patchy frost on Thursday and Friday, with light winds.
Chances of rain are set to return on Friday evening, to be followed by expected showers on Saturday and Sunday, with slighter chances of rain on Monday.
Tuesday and Wednesday are expected to bring the county another sunny break, based on the forecast.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
Evacuation orders remain in effect; forecasters predict brief break in the rain
- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On