Residents Urged To Evacuate Areas Near Russian River

Officials have issued an advisory evacuation notice for people living in low-lying areas near the Russian River in Sonoma County.

While the evacuation order isn’t mandatory, authorities say thousands of people could be affected by the rising waters. 

Sonoma County Sheriff's Sgt. Spencer Crum says the river is expected to crest at 36 feet at 1 a.m. on Friday. The department is urging people living under that line to get out while there’s still time.

“Anyone living under the 36-foot line, we are suggesting to get to higher ground,” Crum said.

The river had been steadily rising from the powerful storm that hovered above the Bay Area in recent days, and in one case, caused a mudslide that knocked a Sausalito home from its foundation. 

The Russian River in Guernville has reportedly hit flood level. This is a submerged horse barn, spotted by @jeffreyschaub. pic.twitter.com/YCorpl60gy

Crum says the water isn't expected to recede until 10 p.m. Friday.

“It’ll be quite a long time to get back inside the banks,” he said.

In an alert, the sheriff’s department advised those who choose to evacuate to be sure to take essential items such as medications, cell phones, chargers and pets with you.

To see if you or someone you know may be impacted by the flood, Sonoma County has developed an interactive flood map.

There has been widespread flooding in the Bay Area due to what has seemed like incessant rain this week. The submerged truck was photographed in Petaluma while the second photo shows a road just outside of Rio Nido, where power lines are also down on Friday morning. The third picture shows damage in Sausalito where a mudslide pushed a duplex down a hill and into another home on Thursday. The final picture shows Highway 37 in Novato, which remained closed westbound on Friday morning although authorities hoped to reopen it soon. Reporters Curtiss Kim, Jeffrey Schaub, @serendipity6000 and @holly_quan supplied the photographs.

A post shared by KCBS Radio (@kcbsradio) on Feb 15, 2019 at 10:45am PST

Jeffrey Schaub contributed to this report.