Congressman Kevin Kiley visited Nevada County Friday morning for a briefing on the county and cities’ response to the snowstorm and the resulting power and communications outages. Nevada County is one of 13 counties included in the Governor’s state of emergency declaration.
Kiley, who represents California’s District 3 in the U.S. House of Representatives, accepted an invitation by Grass Valley Mayor Jan Arbuckle to come an see the extent of damage the previous winter storm caused.
Nevada County CEO Alison Lehman and Nevada City Councilmember Gary Petersen emphasized the need for reliable infrastructure, not just emergency response by investor-owned utilities.
Kiley was receptive to the ask and promised to lean on PG&E especially to make additional resources available. 250 personnel from the utility were assigned on Friday, with another 100 arriving. This includes local trouble crews who have been working since the onset of the storm, last Sunday.
After the briefing at the Rood Center, Kiley and local officials visited the warming shelter set up at the Grass Valley Veterans Memorial Hall. The donuts proffered by the Congressman were highly appreciated, according to people at the Vets Hall.
Nevada County Director of Social Services Rachel Peña spearheads operations at the warming shelter set up at the Grass Valley Veterans Memorial Hall after the February snowstorm.
Kiley and other members of the California Congressional Delegation have sent a letter requesting that President Biden immediately grant a Major Disaster Declaration request from California as soon as it is received, and requested the State of California to immediately send the request.
As of publication time, 8,113 customers in Nevada County were out of power. Outages started on Sunday, making this Day 7 for many. Estimated restoration times vary between March 7 and March 8, subject to further delays with the incoming snow.
According to the National Weather Service, “Snow levels will rise up to 3000 ft today over the Sierra ahead of this first wave, but then lower this evening following cold front passage after 5pm, remaining below 2000ft through the event with significant snow down to many foothill communities. The very stalled pattern and focus of the Pacific jet farther east allows the heavier snow over the Sierra Nevada to become much more intermittent Monday/Tuesday, but the onshore flow does last through midweek which will likely hinder efforts to help Sierra Nevada communities buried in recent snows, as several inches of snow are possible each day.”
Emergency Weather Shelters:
Grass Valley Veterans Memorial Building
255 S Auburn St, Grass Valley, CA 95945
Open 24/7 through Thursday, March 9th at 12:00 pm.
Warming Center for all Nevada County Residents. Amenities include:
- Heat
- Power & charging stations
- Internet
- Snacks and water
- Cots with blankets available
Overnight Shelter for Unhoused Residents (in coordination with Sierra Roots). Amenities include:
- Heat
- Power & charging stations
- Internet
- Meals
- Cots with blankets for unhoused residents