By Thomas Hughes. Bay City News.
Sandbags and supplies are available in the Bay Area to help residents prepare for expected heavy rains that prompted a National Weather Service flood watch from Monday through Wednesday morning.
The storm is forecast to bring several inches of rain to the Bay Area, including 3 to 6 inches in the North Bay between Monday and Friday. Up to 8 inches could fall at higher elevations, and runoff could cause flooding in lower elevations.
Marin, Sonoma, Solano, San Mateo, Alameda and Santa Clara counties have made sandbags available at various collection points. Some locations are restricted to residents of unincorporated areas of those counties, including all towns in Alameda County.
In Marin County, all sites are self-serve and supplies are available on-site. Many sites are at fire stations, schools, parks and recreation areas, as well as the San Rafael Civic Center.
A helpful tip for filling your own Marin County sandbags is to use a traffic cone as a funnel, which is available along with other supplies at county gas stations.
A complete list of Marin County sandbag locations is available at emergency.marincounty.gov/pages/sandbags.
Sonoma County has sandbag stations open at the Sonoma County Fire District Station at 6554 Mirabel Road in Forestville, the Geyserville Fire District Station at 6571 Highway 128 in Healdsburg, the Rancho Adobe Fire Station at 99 Liberty Rd. in Petaluma, and the City of Sonoma at Larson Park.
All locations are self-serve. For more information on Sonoma County storm preparedness, visit socoemergency.org/emergency/flooding/sandbags/.
Alameda County pickups are limited to residents of unincorporated areas of the county. Supplies were available at the county public works building at 951 Turner Court in Hayward, but availability of supplies at other locations could not be confirmed Monday.
A list of sandbag locations in Alameda County is available at
acpwa.org/prepare-for-winter-storms.page. There is a limit of two bags per person.
Residents in unincorporated areas of San Mateo County can make a reservation to pick up up to 15 prefabricated sandbags at the Public Works Department's Grant Corporation Yard, located at 752 Chestnut Street in Redwood City.
Supplies are also available at that location for residents who do not live in unincorporated areas, along with supplies at Pescadero High School and the Public Works Department's La Honda Corporation Yard, located at 59 Entrada Way in La Honda.
For more information and to reserve sandbags, visit smcgov.org/publicworks/sandbags.
Santa Clara County residents can find several locations that have pre-filled sandbags and self-serve stations. Pre-filled sites include behind George Mayne Elementary School in San Jose, the Palo Alto Air Terminal, the El Toro Fire Station in Morgan Hill, Kelley Park in San Jose, and the Santa Clara Valley Water District warehouse at 5905 Winfield Blvd in San Jose.
A complete list of locations in Santa Clara County is available at valleywater.org/flooding-safety/flood-ready/sandbags.
Solano County residents can visit solanocounty.com/depts/oes/grs/storm_ready/sandbag_information.asp for a complete list of sandbag locations.
Self-service stations are available at several locations, including several police and fire stations and public works properties.
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