While there is no immediate threat to Sacramento and the surrounding area, the coming rainy season is making everyone a little more wary this year. After a summer hurricane season that saw the virtual destruction of large parts of the City of New Orleans, Sacramento residents soon found out disaster forecasters project Sacramento as being in grave danger of having a catastrophic flood event.

One reason, as can be witnessed by recent events, is the 100% likelihood that levies will fail. The Jones Tract was fooded after a levie broke during the summer time. While the levies that hold back water from the Pocket or North Natomas neighborhoods of Sacramento are perhaps more substantial, when originally built they were intended to only keep water from flooding farmlands. These levies will fail, all we can do is prolongue there usefullness by continually maintaining and reinforcing them. Still, they will fail.

The biggest fear is the chance that the Nimbus of the Folsom dams might fail. If that occurs during a major storm, it has been suggested that Natomas, the Pocket, Downtown, Land Park, and much of Elk Grove would be innundated with as much as 15 feet of water. Sacramento has been conducting workshops explaining the dangers to residents of these areas. If there are no hills in between your house and a levy, it might be time to consider your own escape plans. There are levied rivers throughout the Central Valley.

Hopefully the lessons of New Orleans will inspire Sacramento leaders and the councils of other towns threatened by flooding throughout the Valley to prepare for the worst. As recently as 1997, Olivehurst, Arboga, Wilton, Manteca, and Modesto saw flooding. We must do more to protect our populated areas from what we know is a natural process in the Valley. Waters rise and cover the land, reenergizing our precious farm soils. As tomato fields and dairies are replaced by housing tracts, we must strengthen our flood controls to protect lives and property.