Michelle Salas was digging trenches around her Running Springs home Thursday to keep it from flooding as the next storm nears, likely bringing
several inches of rain
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“I’ve never been one to sit around and wait for help,” Salas said. “That’s pretty much how mountain people do it.”
Still, Salas said, the last series of storms brought such a massive amount of snow that her neighbors can’t be blamed for not being prepared.
Now, while hundreds of volunteers and emergency workers continue toiling to free residents from snow-bound homes, a new, warmer storm moving into Southern California is bringing new dangers to mountain areas: flooding and the potential for more collapsed roofs from the added weight of wet snow.
Why even this smaller storm is so concerning
San Bernardino County Fire Battalion Chief Mike McClintock said even though the bulk of the storm seems likely to miss Southern California mountain communities, a few inches of rain on top of several feet of snow still on the ground and on homes could cause major damage.
Sheriff’s Department Investigating 13 Deaths In Mountain Communities
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The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said it was investigating 13 deaths since blizzard conditions hit the mountain areas two weeks ago. In a
statement, the sheriff’s department said only one of the deaths, in a traffic accident, has been directly linked to the storm.
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“Many of the deceased had significant medical histories or chronic conditions,” the…
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