UPDATES: Bay Area Christmas storm brings downed trees, power outages, road closures

Powerful winds damaged several homes and at the peak, left about 17,000 people in Marin and Sonoma Counties in the dark on Christmas Eve.

Powerful winds damaged several homes and at the peak, left about 17,000 people in Marin and Sonoma Counties in the dark on Christmas Eve.

In Marin County, about 12,000 PG&E customers in San Anselmo, Fairfax, and West Marin were without power for several hours Wednesday.

In Sonoma County, the outages have been a lot more outages because of fallen trees damaging power lines.

It was a rude awakening on Christmas Eve for some neighbors in Rio Nido, a community near Guerneville.

"It sounded like "bam!" Good morning! At one o'clock in the morning," said Angela Gillespie Jones.

All over Sonoma County, wild winds snapped tree limbs and trees came crashing down on power lines.

"Yeah, it was really scary," said Gillespie Jones.

Now, those residents are in the dark for the holiday.

"Thankfully, my mom's church will open up for us. We will cook dinner there. We will load up there. Hopefully we can find some where to stay. Because it'll take PG&E won't be here for a day or two," said Sierra Simmons.

Dan Blanchard showed us what happened to his home.

"Sixty-mile per hour gusts were coming through -- probably more than that. Branches were just falling everywhere. I got two big holes in the roof and the mast to my power lines down," said Blanchard.

Overnight in Guerneville along Highway 116, a fallen redwood tree destroyed three cars and smashed into two homes.

Sonoma County Fire says a three-year old child who was in one of those homes was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

"Those high winds we experienced last night and also the winds we are expecting tonight is always a big worry. It's also the limbs that come down too, It's really dangerous," said Captain Sam Crenshaw with Sonoma County Fire. "Be aware where those limbs could come down and be cognizant of any potential dangers."

Early this morning in Bodega Bay, a power pole snapped and fell across Highway 1 near the Bodega Dunes Campground.

That blocked traffic and caused several outages.

And in Santa Rosa, crews worked to clear away much the of debris after trees came down on several vehicles and roads.

For so many people looking forward to spending time with family and friends for the Christmas holiday, extreme winds and extended power outages now mean big headaches.

"Everyone is going to be off for a while. Its going to be a dark Christmas," said Blanchard.

As of 4 p.m. Thursday, PGE says they have about 13,000 customers in the North Bay without power.

More heavy winds are expected in the next round of storms.

PG&E says they're working as quickly as possible to return power to customers.

Flooding triggered shelter-in-place warnings and possible evacuations early Wednesday morning in parts of Menlo Park as heavy rain continued to impact the Bay Area.

Around 4:20 a.m., the Menlo Park Police Department reported flooding in the 1300 block of Hamilton Avenue between Willow Road and Henderson Avenue. Residents in the area were told to shelter in place, while people outside the neighborhood were urged to stay away.

Flooding was also reported on the 1300 block of Carlton Avenue. Travel in the area should be avoided until further notice.

One driver was stranded in a car, but was able to get out. Another parked car was seen underwater.

Drivers are warned not to go around barricades or enter flooded streets. Authorities said driving into floodwaters is extremely dangerous and can result in serious injury or death. Residents were advised to closely monitor conditions and said 911 should only be called for life-threatening emergencies or if evacuation assistance is required.

Menlo Park police officers and fire crews are contacting residents door to door to determine whether evacuations are needed. Authorities said updates will be posted through Menlo Park police social media channels as conditions evolve.

ABC7 News contributed to this story.

Damaging winds hit the Bay Area Tuesday night into Wednesday Morning.

By 6 a.m., there were more than 100 reports of wind damage across the region.

The highest wind gusts were reported at 108 mph in Marin County. Around the Bay shoreline, there were winds in excess of 70 mph.

In the heart of San Francisco's Union Square, the Winter Walk is still shining, even as rain moved in ahead of a strong Tuesday night storm.

In the heart of San Francisco's Union Square, the Winter Walk is still shining, even as rain moved in ahead of a strong Tuesday night storm.

For Brownie Simms, cofounder of condiment company The Final Sauce, the weather hasn't dampened the holiday spirit.

"This is our last popup of the year, so we ended the fourth quarter great," Simms said.

The womenowned business sold out of nearly all of its condiments and sauces. Simms said the event setup helped vendors.

"The way they set this up this is how it should be at most events," she said, adding, "If you're willing to be outside in the cold, you're willing to make it."

But while vendors are braving the elements with optimism, the city is preparing for something more serious.

A massive power outage over the weekend left roughly a third of San Francisco in the dark, stretching emergency crews thin just as another round of storms arrives. The Department of Emergency Management says it has now fully shifted into storm mode.

"We feel ready to go," said Mary Ellen Carroll, the department's executive director. "It does take a little extra planning when these things happen over the holiday, just to make sure we're fully covered on response."

Carroll said the backtoback emergencies have tested the city's resources.

"The outage and then the storms backtoback definitely put more pressure on resources and coordination. We didn't have a notice for that, the power outage."

Even before the blackout, the city had already been preparing for the holidayweek storm system.

"We have known about this weather system since before that outage," she said. "So we were already thinking and planning for the holiday week and the storm coming."

But the timing meant many of the same staff were pushed to their limits.

"A lot of people worked almost three days straight on the outage to ensure that San Franciscans were safe and got the support they needed," Carroll said.

With more rain and wind on the way, she expects additional outages.

"It's very likely we'll have more stormrelated outages, and that's normal," she said. "But it's not going to feel great for people who were out for two or three days."

While thousands of residents lost power in their homes, the city is also focused on protecting those without homes at all.

"There are extra beds available for people to come in," Carroll said. "And we've been doing outreach for days to make sure that anyone who's willing to come in, we have a spot for them."

Outreach teams will be back on the streets early Wednesday to check on people who may be vulnerable as the next storm arrives.

"We will be out in the street first thing tomorrow morning again with our outreach teams to look for folks that might be vulnerable," she said.