2 cities under evacuation order as San Joaquin River water levels rise
SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- Two communities in San Joaquin County are under an evacuation order right now because of rising water in the San Joaquin River.
As some cars in a Manteca neighborhood sit partially submerged in water, spilling over from the San Joaquin River, some homeowners like Mel Sparks are now forced to travel by boat just to take the trash out.
"Other than having to come back and forth with our boat, that's just about it," Sparks said.
The San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office issued an urgent evacuation order for Manteca neighbors living along Airport Court and those living near the Haven Acres Marina in Lathrop on Saturday, amid concerns of rising water levels caused by recent rain and runoff from snow melt.
MORE: Storm timeline: Level 2 storm arrives Tuesday morning, strong winds by afternoon
Also shutting down the San Joaquin River for all recreational boat use from the Deepwater Channel all the way to the Stanislaus County line.
"If someone has a medical emergency, and water levels are too high, then emergency vehicles can't get in," Deputy Nick Goucher, a spokesman for the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office said. "It takes a lot longer to get in by boat than it does by car."
Despite the warnings, many chose not to leave.
"There was no reason for us to leave, we've been through this so many times, there's no reason for us to leave, if the levee broke, of course, the people that run the levees, they would let us know immediately and we'd be gone," Sparks said.
VIDEO: Rain brings repeating pattern of more flooding, landslide concerns to North Bay
And some say the homes on Airport Court are already raised up high, with most neighbors choosing to live on the second floor of their homes.
John Wright says after living through five floods and two fires in this area, he's already taken precautions to protect his valuables downstairs and says, he's ready to ride out the next round of storms.
"We live up top, the only thing we lose downstairs is everything, you know I've got a $5,000 pool table, down there, I've got dart boards, you know I've got a game room down there and everything and I've got it all on cinder block where it don't get destroyed by the water," Wright said.
LIVE: Track rain in San Francisco Bay Area with Live Doppler 7
The San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office added that any resident that does need leave, can come back and forth freely and at this point in time, there are currently no issues with any of the county's levees.
Authorities say they're monitoring the river level to determine for how long the evacuation orders will be kept in place.
If you're on the ABC7 News app, click here to watch live
