South Bay prepares for year's first big storm
SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- The storms in December served as a wakeup call for businesses throughout the region. Some were caught off guard by the heavy rain, and it ended up impacting their day-to-day operations.
"I was amazed at the quantity of water that came in," said Lissa Shoun with Andy's Pet Shop and animal rescue.
Employees at the San Jose business were taken aback by last December's storm.
VIDEO: ABC7 Meteorologist Drew Tuma explains the Pineapple Express coming Friday.
"And it was just running straight out of the roof into these big buckets and garbage cans," said employee Zoe Thole. "And it splattered, so there were wet towels everywhere."
Cellphone video shot during the storm shows some of the rain seeping through the roof. Employees scrambled to move product and to protect their adoptable pets.
"We need to keep them warm and dry, you know, we don't want the product to get wet and lose money that way as well," Thole said.
But a Safeway store in the Evergreen neighborhood didn't fare so well.
Video from Sky 7 HD showed the damage, with parts of the roof caved in.
The store has been shut down ever since the storm. No word from Safeway on its future. In the meantime, nearby businesses are feeling the pinch.
"Safeway brings us at least 15 to 20 percent of our business because of the walk-in crowd," said Jaiganesh Santhanam with 8 Elements Indian Cuisine. "They buy takeout and then people look at our restaurant, cause it's a little bit hidden from the road."
Managers at the restaurant say their roof is completely safe, and they hope to see more customers return in the coming weeks.
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As for the folks at Andy's, a crowdfunding campaign raised $3,000 to help patch up parts of their roof. But it's only a temporary fix.
"It's a very, very old roof," said Shoun. "It's been patched many, many times. So, it's definitely at the end of its useful life."
Andy's is taking a wait and see approach as they await the upcoming storm.
Steady rain is expected to hit the North Bay starting Thursday night, with scattered and light showers arriving for the Bay Area later in the evening. The heaviest part of the storm will arrive in time for the Friday morning commute.
A Flash Flood Watch has been issued for the North Bay. It's set to begin Thursday at 10 p.m. and go through Saturday at 6 a.m. ABC7 Meteorologist Sandhya Patel says to watch out, because the creeks and streams will quickly rise, areas with poor drainage may flood, and there will be the potential for rockslides and mudslides.
A Wind Advisory has also been issued for most of the Bay Area. That begins Friday at 4 a.m. and is in effect until 4 a.m. Saturday.
It's easy to track the storm on Live Doppler 7 HD anytime! Click here to download the ABC7 Weather App for free on Apple's App Store or Google Play.
