Laguna Beach wants residents to get ready for heavy rains

Laguna Beach officials are taking seriously the threat of heavy rains expected this winter with an onslaught of inspections, along with letters and social media updates to help residents prepare.

Two weeks ago, City Manager John Pietig updated City Council members on how various departments such as fire and marine safety are preparing for possible El Niño conditions.

Laguna Beach has several scheduled workshops for storm preparation as well, including a disaster planning exercise for city employees in October that will simulate a long-term rainstorm. The city will also host a Nov. 5 storm preparedness seminar for the public at 6 p.m. in the Laguna Beach Community & Susi Q Center.

Fire and marine safety departments are inspecting water-response equipment and meeting with police and public works staff to coordinate response procedures.

Twelve days of steady rain in December 2010 caused $3.5 million in damage to 59 Laguna Canyon and downtown businesses, according to a city staff report.

Mud rose 2 to 3 feet high on Broadway Street and “only those [businesses] with flood gates were spared from an unwanted intrusion of sticky, sandy mud that seeped deep into shops and destroyed merchandise,” according to a 2011 Coastline Pilot editorial on the one-year anniversary of the flooding.

“The city takes several steps every year to prepare for the rainy season as well as other disasters, but we are aware and recognize increased challenges of an El Niño event,” Deputy City Manager Ben Siegel said.

Laguna Canyon and downtown are prone to flooding, so the city will target those areas with mailers and door hangers that provide information on storm preparation.

On Oct. 26, Laguna officials will oversee a practice exercise to ensure owners and employees know how to install city-mandated flood gates, which fit in the lower-third of a doorway to prevent water from getting inside and are made of coated plywood.

Residents can do their part in protecting property by gathering sandbags, available at each of the city’s four fire stations along with sand.

It hasn’t been decided if there will be a limit to the number of sandbags given to each person.

“We need to make sure there are sandbags available for residents and businesses in an emergency, not necessarily for contractors who should bag their sites as they go along “ Pietig told the council earlier this month. “It is a challenge every year.”

City crews, working with Laguna Canyon Foundation volunteers, have cleared debris such as tree limbs from several sections of Laguna Canyon Creek.