Storm causes flood damage to some Santa Cruz homes, businesses

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KGO) -- The calm between storms right now is giving Santa Cruz homeowners and businesses time to clean-up the mess caused by flooding from the storm over the weekend.

Paradise Park along the San Lorenzo River was hard hit the storm.

While the storm has been a delight for some, it has been a disaster for others.

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Surfers in Santa Cruz are enjoying larger swells, but the beaches are littered with debris and logs that washed down from flooded homes in the Santa Cruz hills.

Robyn Flanigan showed ABC7 News the soaked mess in her friend's Santa Cruz home. "It was so high, it filled up these drawers," she said.

The San Lorenzo River rose rapidly during Saturday night's rain storm. "Then I heard, it sounded like a waterfall down here and I was like holy crap," homeowner Karen Kirby said.

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Kirby and Flanigan tried to grab things from the home's lower level. "It was just so strong, the undercurrents in the house were so strong, that I told her just leave it," Flanigan said.

"I got my Prius up to the top of the driveway and then it died," Kirby said.

The debris from Kirby's house and others flows to the ocean where county workers tested the water for E. coli and other contaminants. "It's not safe to be in the water three days after it's been raining, the levels get very high at that point," Santa Cruz County resident Matt Bessee said.

But you can't keep beach scavengers away in Capitola where driftwood is piled post storm. "I've never seen this much before ever. I've been wanting to do this project and so I've been planning on coming down here and getting some anyway, so after the storm is the perfect time," Santa Cruz resident Letitia Davis said.

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