Cold, Wet Weather Expected Tonight Through Thursday. Residents Advised to Be Prepared and Keep Warm
Cold, Wet Weather Expected Tonight Through Thursday.
Residents Advised to Be Prepared and Keep Warm
SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CALIF. — A cold and wet storm system forecast to arrive Tuesday evening is expected to remain in the area until Thursday morning, bringing moderate rainfall for most of the area with the possibility of thunderstorms accompanied by heavier deluges, gusty winds, hail, and temperatures dipping toward freezing in some areas.
Most of the Santa Clara Valley is expected to get between .25” to .75” of rainfall; however, isolated thunderstorms may produce as much as twice that amount in some areas. Higher elevations could see up to 3” of rain.
While the amount of rainfall is expected to be largely beneficial and not cause any mudslides or flooding, the County of Santa Clara encourages residents to be prepared. Motorists should be aware of slick roads and other roadway hazards. The region’s highest peaks could see snowfall, and low temperatures are expected to remain as the storm moves on late in the week, with overnight lows in the 30s and approaching freezing in the South County valley areas.
The County reminds residents that cold weather can be deadly—the unhoused and the elderly can be most impacted. The Office of Supportive Housing has activated its inclement weather plan through Thursday morning. Outreach teams are going to the homeless community to distribute ponchos and blankets, and to encourage the unhoused to take shelter. To that end, the shelter placement hotline has been staffed since Monday night, and will continue to operate tonight and Wednesday until 9 p.m.
Hotlines are available to direct unhoused people to services:
- Call 2-1-1: For health and human services in Santa Clara County;
- Shelter Hotline: Call the County Office of Supportive Housing at 408-278-6420 to ask for assistance.
- HomeFirst Homeless Helpline: Call 408-510-7600 or e-mail the HomeFirst Helpline at outreach@homefirstscc.org. HomeFirst’s Outreach team provides access to emergency shelter, showers, laundry, meals, and medical services.
- Homeless individuals can register to receive text messages about services with three simple steps:
- Address a text message to: 888777
- Type BADWEATHER in the message
- Send the message
People 65 years of age and older who are sheltered at home should adjust the thermostat as needed to maintain a comfortable body temperature. If that is not possible, they may choose to stay with family or friends, or maintain warmth by using extra blankets and sleeping bags, drinking warm beverages and avoiding alcohol, or wearing a hat and scarf and extra layers of clothes.
Friends, family, and neighbors of older adults should check in frequently to make sure that their homes are adequately heated and that they are safe. For cold weather safety tips in English, Spanish, Chinese and Vietnamese, visit: http://bit.ly/coldweathersafe.
SAFETY TIPS DURING COLD WEATHER
If possible, avoid being outside during the coldest part of the day, or for extended periods of time in extreme cold weather.
- Dress in layers
- Wear a hat if possible, preferably one that covers your ears
- Mittens provide more warmth than gloves
- Wear waterproof, insulated boots to avoid hypothermia or frostbite
- Stay hydrated
- Get out of wet clothes as soon as possible
- Drinking alcohol and staying outside in cold temperatures can be deadly. Avoid excessive consumption of alcohol if you will be staying outside
For emergency preparedness information, visit the County Office of Emergency Management website.
# # #
ABOUT THE COUNTY OF SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA
The County of Santa Clara government serves a diverse, multi-cultural population of 1.9 million residents in Santa Clara County, California, making it more populous than 14 states in the U.S. combined. The County provides essential services to its residents, including public health protection, environmental stewardship, medical services through the County of Santa Clara Health System, child and adult protection services, homelessness prevention and solutions, roads, park services, libraries, emergency response to disasters, protection of minority communities and those under threat, access to a fair criminal justice system, and many other public benefits.
Visit the County of Santa Clara at: https://www.sccgov.org
Like us on Facebook: http://Facebook.com/County.of.Santa.Clara/
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/sccgov
