The National Weather Service has updated a Flood Advisory to a Flood Warning for San Francisco on Wednesday night. According to city officials, flooding on urban streets is imminent as rain continues to pour overnight.
San Francisco has activated its Emergency Operations Center to coordinate storm operations and emergency responses.
“We want people to stay indoors. We want them to stay home. Wind gusts will pick up 50-70 mph, trees will be falling, power outages will occur, floods will be happening in the city. The rainfall is coming down hard and it’s not letting up anytime soon,” Mayor London Breed told reporters.
PG&E reports that more than 10,500 customers lost power this evening.
Mary Ellen Carroll, executive director of the Department of Emergency Management, said at 5 p.m., “It was a quiet day until an hour ago. Our 911 operations center is extremely busy right now. We’ve received a half inch of rain today, however, that number is going to go up significantly over the next few hours. Stay off the roads. If you encounter a flooded area, please do not drive through it.
“It’s going to be a long night for us,” Carroll added.
According to the NWS, additional rainfall amounts of 1 to 3 inches are possible.
According to Breed, San Francisco residents should only call 911 if they face a life-threatening situation. The mayor said that residents should call 311 for non-life-threatening issues or go to sf311.org.
“Our Emergency Operations Center is active. Crews are working around-the-clock to take care of residents and the city,” Breed said.
