Officials concerned rising water could block residents' only exit
By Cheryl Miller

 

HOLT -- Authorities evacuated two Delta farming islands late Monday as wind-driven floodwaters from a broken levee eroded residents' only access road.

The San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office stressed that Bacon and Mandeville islands were not in danger of flooding from the levee break that inundated the neighboring 12,000-acre Jones Tract.

But engineers worried waves crashing along a five-mile section of Lower Jones Road could consume the sole exit for 115 residents living on the two farming islands.

Spanish-speaking sheriff's deputies, Spanish-language radio stations and a California Highway Patrol helicopter broadcast the evacuation orders to roughly 60 farm workers living in island camps.

"They knocked on the door and said, '30 minutes and you have to leave,' " said a Bacon Island resident who identified herself only as Carmen. She gathered some documents and grabbed a few personal items before leaving with her son, who did not live there. He said many of her neighbors had already fled, fearful that a second levee would break and take their homes next.

Flood damage estimates range from $26 million to $30 million, according to county Office of Emergency Services estimates. That doesn't include $10 million in crop losses or the $25 million in flooded structures on Jones Tract.

The early-evening evacuations marred what generally had been a day of positive developments.

Crews successfully raised a levee protecting Highway 4 and adjoining farmland from floodwaters lapping at the island's southern edges. The California Highway Patrol still urged drivers to use other routes to the Bay Area through the week as trucks and law enforcement vehicles continue to clog Highway 4 at times.

Burlington North Santa Fe repaired enough of a tract trestle to restart freight-train service across the island. Amtrak trains still are being diverted around the area, however, and no estimates of when the passenger rail service will resume have been made, a Burlington spokeswoman said.

And the Dutra Group capped both ends of the 400-foot levee break on Jones Tract's west side. The company has dumped 20,000 tons of rock into the breach and expects to continue 24-hour repair operations.

But west winds gusting to almost 30 mph wreaked havoc on crews who had focused on sandbagging and stabilizing work on the island's southern borders. By early afternoon, property owners and engineers reported erosion on Jones Tract's northwest edges.

"As the weather conditions change, we have to change our focus," Sheriff Baxter Dunn said.

The reclamation district that owns and maintains the levees on the north side of the island pledged roughly $200,000 to battle the erosion. But Chris Neudeck, an engineer for the district, said the work would likely cost more than $800,000, adding: "We need the state to backstop this."

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in the county on Saturday, freeing up some state money for work. The federal government has yet to issue a similar declaration, which also would provide money for cleanup.

The district's members, mostly farmers, pleaded with state and federal agencies Monday to remain at the flood site for as long as possible.

"It's kind of like we're going to build this house. ... We've got the roof on, and we want to make sure the roof stays intact," Neudeck said.

Evacuees from Bacon and Mandeville islands were directed Monday night to Edison High School in Stockton. But authorities say they should not have to stay in emergency shelters long.

Workers planned to shore up the eroding road throughout the night and reopen it whenever engineers deemed it safe. Emergency services officials also were pursuing water taxis to take farmers to and from the fields today if the road did not reopen.

"We're moving right into the height of the (harvest) season, so this is a bad time for this to occur," Dunn said. #

Costs of repairs

Damage estimates from flooding in Jones Tract total more than $82.5 million, according to estimates released Monday by the San Joaquin County Office of Emergency Services. The costs are broken down as follows:

* $6,868: Stockton's costs for evacuation assistance with equipment, labor and personnel.

* $15 million: Reclamation District 2038, Lower Jones Tract, for costs that include drainage, dewatering and pump restoration.

* $2 million to $4 million: Reclamation District 2039, Upper Jones Tract, for drainage-system pumps.

* $2.29 million: San Joaquin County costs, including $29,552 for a command post, $1.73 million for structural failure of roads due to heavy traffic and erosion, and $434,000 to replace Bacon Island Road.

* $2 million: Cost estimate for emergency modifications to Trapper Slough.

* $5 million to $7 million Estimate to stabilize break at Middle River and for permanent repair.

* $9.8 million Total crop damage estimate by the county's Agricultural Commissioner's office.

* $25 million Cost estimate for total structures on Jones Tract.

* $17.5 million Estimate to replace and repair infrastructure on Jones Tract.