El Niño Storms Push Road Repair Bill To $9M In Santa Cruz County
BEN LOMOND (KCBS) -- El Nino storms have slammed some Santa Cruz mountain communities hard, causing mudslides and evacuations.
61-inches of rain have fallen in Ben Lomond, and the storms have pushed the estimated road repair bill in the Santa Cruz County up to $9 million.
"The storms this year have made the situation worse. We're already facing significant budget cutbacks from the reductions to the gas tax, and cutbacks in federal and state funding. So, to add storm damage on top of that has been a real problem," Santa Cruz County Supervisor Ryan Coonerty said.
County supervisors will consider declaring a state of emergency due to the storms at a meeting Tuesday. That could help secure extra funding to fix damage caused by the storms.
Storms brought down trees, caused mudslides, and forced evacuations in the Felton Grove, Paradise Park and lower Soquel Creek areas.
