Lodi area weathers the storms
Levees breach along Mokelumne River, but pose little threat
With the Mokelumne River running rapid and high along the banks, the Lodi area is continuing to see some portions of levees spill water from river to land. No homes have been threatened as a result of these breaches and breaks.
One levee breach flooded into a vineyard on Monday morning near Clarksdale Road on the north side of the Mokelumne. Monday’s incident followed at least two other reported levee issues this weekend.
The San Joaquin County Office of Emergency Services reported a break on Saturday along White Slough. Another boil — water streaming out on land through the lower end of a levee — has leaked water into a vineyard on the south side of the river east of Kennison Lane since Saturday.
Near Clarksdale Road, a small creek of flood water could be seen creeping its way down a vineyard access road on Monday just between 9 and 11 a.m.
The river had spilled over the main levee and broke through the private levee of the vineyard, where it began flooding the area.
It was relatively small, but widened to about 2 feet, said Brandon Sywassink, ranch foreman for Manna Ranch.
The vineyards are expected to be OK as long as they don’t become fully submerged, he said. However, there is the possibility that they could be damaged by mildew. Sywassink also expects to see additional costs from having to pump water out of the fields.
On the south side of the Mokelumne River off of Victor Road, a 100-acre vineyard that he was heading to on Monday was also threatened by water flooding the field. Much of the soil beneath the vines closest to the boil were submerged in water.
Mike Manna of Manna Ranch said he had been watching the leak for close to a week but it didn’t let loose a large quantity of water until Saturday.
“It started as a small boil,” he said. It was likely caused by the roots of trees breaking small openings in the levee, he said. Sywassink also mentioned the threat of small burrowing animals in weakening the levees.
When workers started packing sandbags around the boil, a wider section opened up so they were forced to create a larger wall of sandbags to reinforce the area as the water continued to flow into the vineyard.
As of noon on Monday, more than 2,000 sandbags were piled up around the break and more pallets of sandbags were set to be delivered that day. A levee engineer was sent at the request of San Joaquin County OES to give advice, according to Michael Cockrell, director of emergency operations in the county.
Since the rushing water hits a sharp bend further back in the river, many of the vineyard employees were expecting that portion of the levee to break first, however it has held strong thus far.
Further west, the Highland Canal at the confluence of White Slough and Dredger Cut suffered a levee break early Saturday morning, just three-quarters of a mile from White Slough Water Pollution Control Facility buildings, according to wastewater plant superintendent Karen Honer.
It is two-thirds of a mile from the Northern California Power Agency, she said. Neither building was threatened by the break, although the waste water treatment plant’s fields were flooded following the break.
Honer said that the break was in the same location where it previously broke in the 1997 flood.
In response to incidents like these, OES has been working to coordinate solutions and inform different parties and agencies of these levee issues.
Agricultural losses are reported to the San Joaquin County Agricultural Commissioner, who determines if state or federal programs should be sought after, Cockrell said. When private property levees become damaged, OES works together with law enforcement and fire departments to assess public safety. Levee owners are connected with levee engineers if they would like professional advise for repairing damage, he said.
While workers at Manna Ranch works to mitigate the damage from water flow, they are bracing for the threat of more storms this week.
“We’re waiting to see how Mother Nature treats us,” Sywassink said.