UPDATE (Fri., March 10, 2023) - An Evacuation Order is now in effect for Oceano residents near the Oceano Lagoon. The area was previously under an Evacuation Warning.
The affected area includes:
- North and east of Strand Way and River Ave.
- South of Pier Ave. to the ocean
- East to the railroad tracks, along the tracks to Pier Ave.
County officials say people in that area should leave now and seek higher ground.
A temporary evacuation point remains open at the Oceano Community Center and a Red Cross Shelter is open at Cal Poly.
___
(Thurs., March 9, 2023) - An Evacuation Order has been issued for Oceano residents south of the Arroyo Grande Creek Levee and west of Highway 1.
County emergency officials say people should seek higher ground before 8 p.m. Thursday.
A temporary evacuation point has been set up at the Oceano Community Center located at 1425 19th Street. RVs will be allowed to park overnight at the community center.
An American Red Cross Shelter will be open starting at 6 p.m. at Cal Poly's Crandall Hall at 1 Grand Ave. in San Luis Obispo. Pets are welcome.
An evacuation warning remains in place for the area north of the Arroyo Grande Creek and near the Oceano Lagoon.
County emergency officials say people in the warning area should be prepared for possible flooding and evacuation orders.
If evacuations become necessary, emergency officials will use notification methods such as Wireless Emergency Alerts, reverse 911, and social media.
In January, a levee breach flooded farms and homes on the south side of the Arroyo Grande Creek.
Since then, county officials say public works crews have repaired the breach and reinforced the levee for 1,000 feet along the mobile home parks. They've also reportedly made temporary repairs to another 1,000 feet of levee.
Still, the county says that with the heavy rain expected in the next few days, a spillover or levee failure could happen at any time.
“We already have significant ground saturation so, there is a very strong possibility that we will hit flood stage not just in the Arroyo Grande Creek, but many other creeks throughout our community,” said Rachel Dion, Emergency Services Coordinator for San Luis Obispo County.
For questions or transportation assistance, call the county's Phone Assistance Center at (805) 543-2444.
For more storm preparation information, visit ReadySLO.org.
Follow the County of San Luis Obispo Office of Emergency Services on Twitter @slocountyoes and Facebook.com/SLOCountyOES.
