'Mother Nature kind of caught us by surprise': California road officials speak after freeway flooding

BEEN DONE. WHAT DID THEY HAVE TO SAY? LYSEE: LIKE YOU MENTIONED, WE HAVE SEEN FLOODING HERE BEFORE ON THIS STRETCH OF HIGHWAY 99 BUT CALTRANS SAYS THE AMOUNT OF WATER AND THE SPEED AT WHICH IT CAME THROUGH THIS AREA OVER THE WEEKEND WAS A SURPRISE. TAKE A LOOK AT THE SCENE ON NEW YEAR’S DAY. CALTRANS SAYS MORE THAN 20 CARS WERE STRANDED IN THE FLOODWATERS. WE TALKED TO ONE OF THOSE DRIVERS WHO HAD TO BE RESCUED AND SHE TOLD US THE HIGHWAY WAS STILL OPEN AND SHE DIDN’T REALIZE THE DANGER SHE WAS IN UNTIL IT WAS TOO LATE. CALTRANS SAYS THEY SHUT DOWN THE HIGHWAY HERE AFTER MIDNIGHT. BUT WE ASKED IF IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN CLOSED SOONER, ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING THIS IS AN AREA THAT IS KNOWN TO BE PRONE TO FLOODING. COULD THIS HAVE BEEN AVOIDED? HERE IS WHAT THEY TOLD US. >> MOTHER NATURE KIND OF CAUGHT US BY SURPRISE THERE WITH THE AMOUNT OF WATER THAT GOT THROUGH THERE IN SUCH A QUICK AMOUNT OF TIME. WE DIDN’T HAVE STAFFING THERE THAT WE HAVE NOW, SO NOW WE’RE ACTIVELY DURING THESE STORMS, MONITORING IT. WE’VE GOT THE EQUIPMENT AND EVERYTHING READY TO GO IF THAT SCENARIO PLAYS OUT AGAIN. BUT THAT NIGHT, UNFORTUNATELY WE , DID NOT PREPARE FOR THAT KIND OF WATER TO GET INTO THE ROADWAY. LYSEE: HE MENTIONED LEVEE BREAKS IN THE AREA OF THE COSUMNES RIVER MEANT A LOT MORE WATER CAME THROUGH HERE THAT THEY WOULD TYPICALLY SEE DURING A "NORMAL FLOODING EVENT DUE TO RAINFALL." LIVE IN AT HIGHWAY 99 AND DILLARD ROAD, LYSEE MITRI, KCRA 3 NEWS. TY: ARE THERE ANY LONGTERM PLANS TO ADDRESS FLOODING AT THAT PROBLEM SPOT? LYSEE: CALTRANS SAYS THE GOAL IS TO EVENTUALLY RAISE THIS ELEVATION OF THE HIGHWAY TO A 200-YEAR FLOOD LEVEL. BUT THEY DON’T HAVE A PROGRAM TO DO THA

The storm that swept through Northern California on New Year's Eve led to some dangerous flooding and three people dying in Sacramento County.Along Highway 99 near Dillard Road, where two bodies were found, some questioned why that stretch of road was not closed sooner. Several people in that area had to be rescued after getting caught in the floodwater.Danielle Hibbitts was driving north from her home in Stockton to Sacramento, where she had planned to go to a comedy show for New Year's Eve. Instead, she said she got stuck in the flooding. She said she did not realize that she was in danger until it was too late."It should’ve been blocked off. Police should’ve been there to divert the traffic, cones or Highway Patrol to let people know that part of the freeway was out," Hibbitts said. "There was no prior notice or anything."Caltrans said more than 20 cars were stranded in the floodwaters. Crews shut down that portion of the highway after midnight on Sunday.| MORE | How are flooded roads handled? Sac County, CHP officials explain after deadly New Year's Eve stormHowever, considering that the rainstorm was expected and that the stretch of Highway 99 near Dillard Road is an area known to be prone to flooding, KCRA 3 talked to Caltrans about whether the highway should have been shut down sooner. "Mother Nature kind of caught us by surprise there with the amount of water that got through there in such a quick amount of time, and so we didn't have staffing there that we have now," Caltrans Spokesperson Steve Nelson said. "So, now we're actively during these storms monitoring it. We've got the equipment and everything ready to go if that scenario plays out again, but that night, unfortunately, we did not prepare for that kind of water to get into the roadway."Nelson said that levee breaks in the area of the Cosumnes River meant a lot more water went rushing through the highway than there would typically be during a "normal flooding event" due to rainfall."Our top priority is safety and so we will be actively monitoring those trouble spots throughout the storms, and it’s looking like we’re not gonna get any break any time soon," Nelson said. He said Caltrans' goal for the future would be to eventually raise the elevation of that part of the highway to a 200-year flood level, but the agency does not currently have a program to do that yet.More wet weather will pass through Northern California this weekend. See full storm coverage here

SACRAMENTO, Calif. —

The storm that swept through Northern California on New Year's Eve led to some dangerous flooding and three people dying in Sacramento County.

Along Highway 99 near Dillard Road, where two bodies were found, some questioned why that stretch of road was not closed sooner. Several people in that area had to be rescued after getting caught in the floodwater.

Danielle Hibbitts was driving north from her home in Stockton to Sacramento, where she had planned to go to a comedy show for New Year's Eve. Instead, she said she got stuck in the flooding. She said she did not realize that she was in danger until it was too late.

"It should’ve been blocked off. Police should’ve been there to divert the traffic, cones or Highway Patrol to let people know that part of the freeway was out," Hibbitts said. "There was no prior notice or anything."

Caltrans said more than 20 cars were stranded in the floodwaters. Crews shut down that portion of the highway after midnight on Sunday.

| MORE | How are flooded roads handled? Sac County, CHP officials explain after deadly New Year's Eve storm

However, considering that the rainstorm was expected and that the stretch of Highway 99 near Dillard Road is an area known to be prone to flooding, KCRA 3 talked to Caltrans about whether the highway should have been shut down sooner.

"Mother Nature kind of caught us by surprise there with the amount of water that got through there in such a quick amount of time, and so we didn't have staffing there that we have now," Caltrans Spokesperson Steve Nelson said. "So, now we're actively during these storms monitoring it. We've got the equipment and everything ready to go if that scenario plays out again, but that night, unfortunately, we did not prepare for that kind of water to get into the roadway."

Nelson said that levee breaks in the area of the Cosumnes River meant a lot more water went rushing through the highway than there would typically be during a "normal flooding event" due to rainfall.

"Our top priority is safety and so we will be actively monitoring those trouble spots throughout the storms, and it’s looking like we’re not gonna get any break any time soon," Nelson said.

He said Caltrans' goal for the future would be to eventually raise the elevation of that part of the highway to a 200-year flood level, but the agency does not currently have a program to do that yet.

More wet weather will pass through Northern California this weekend.

See full storm coverage here

'Mother Nature kind of caught us by surprise': California road officials speak after freeway flooding

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