San Bernardino County officials are looking at how well they responded to the winter storms that stranded residents and destroyed buildings in mountain communities over the past three weeks.
A worker clears snow from Highway 173 as residents of the San Bernardino Mountains dig out from record-breaking snow in recent weeks in Lake Arrowhead on Saturday, March 11, 2023. (File photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
“We clearly have people in the community who feel that the county’s response fell short,” Dawn Rowe, chairperson of the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, said at the board’s Tuesday, March 14, meeting — its first regular session since the storms hit the county.
“I have concerns that the county could have been more effective in some key areas,” said Rowe, who represents the 3rd District, which includes the San Bernardino Mountain communities.
She told county CEO Leonard X. Hernandez to begin a “comprehensive examination of how the county responded to this crisis and how to respond to emergencies in general.”
Rowe asked Hernandez to publicly report his findings within six months.
“A storm this widespread and this intense in the rim communities has never occurred,” Hernandez told the supervisors in a report on Tuesday morning. “The county did not have the size and scale of plows and other specialized snow removal equipment immediately on hand to quickly clear through the snow.”
County public works officials got notice that the oncoming storms in February would be blizzards 24 hours before they hit, according to Hernandez. As the severity of the storm became clear, the county brought in more resources, including a unified command structure to coordinate public-safety needs.
Hernandez conceded the county’s response may been lacking.
“As for the band that struck the Crestline and Lake Arrowhead areas, we are working to understand whether adequate preparation was accomplished and if there would have been any way to ensure a smooth and quick return to normal,” he said.
The Goodwin & Son’s Market sign is seen Friday, March 3, 2023, buried in snow. (File photo by Watchara Phomicinda, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
But at Tuesday’s meeting, supervisors praised the county’s response.
“We’ve done a great job, and all of our team members have done a great job,” 5th District Supervisor Joe Baca Jr. said. “I know it was a very challenging, a very trying time for many people. I want to thank those for their patience.”
“A lot of people are praising the county — and they should — and a lot of people are second-guessing a lot of things,” 4th District Supervisor Curt Hagman said, “but to respond to a natural disaster like the way our team did, it just makes us proud.”
The board’s comments echo those of Sheriff Shannon Dicus, who said last week that criticism of the county’s emergency response was “misguided.”
“In terms of doing what’s important — protecting human life — the response has been immediate,” Dicus said.
As of Thursday, March 9, one person has died locally as a direct result of the winter storms, according to the San Bernardino County Coroner’s Office. Eight other deaths are being investigated.
The county is still totaling the property damage done by the storms, spokesperson David Wert wrote in an email.
As of Monday night, March 13, county Building and Safety staff had tagged 22 residences in the mountains as being unsafe for human habitation, along with seven non-residential buildings.
Among other properties damaged, the storms cost the 10,000 residents of the mountain community of Crestline their only grocery store, Goodwin & Son’s, when its roof collapsed under the weight of accumulated snow Wednesday, March 1.
Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in 34 of California’s 58 counties due to the winter storms. The widespread nature, along with the severity, severely impacted how government agencies responded, according to Brian J. Gerber, co-director of the Center for Emergency Management & Homeland Security at Arizona State University.
“If it’s localized to a fairly specific area, surrounding communities and states provide support, both personnel and equipment,” Gerber said.
The aftermath of winter storms is evident as buildings and street signs are buried in several feet of snow in Crestline on Friday, March 3, 2023. (File photo by Watchara Phomicinda, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
First responders, specialized equipment and other support, including from regional non-profit groups, would normally pour into an area experiencing an emergency.
But in the case of the storms in late February and early March, Gerber said, “everybody needs support, and that puts a really big strain on the system.”
Gerber grew up in Wisconsin, and as a young man, drove a snowplow.
Officials in Wisconsin put a lot of resources into preparing for winter storms, “but even in a place like the Great Lakes region, you might get 100″ in a few areas, but no place is going to get that all at once,” Gerber said.
And no agency will have the equipment needed to respond to that kind of snowfall by itself, as it’s simply too expensive for an agency to own enough of the big plows.
At the Wednesday, March 8, meeting of the Big Bear Lake City Council, City Manager Eric Sund said economics hampered his city’s response, which residents had mostly praised, even as they worry about the storm’s impact on the local tourism industry.
“That grader cost $570,000 and we only use it in the winter months,” he said. “Would it be nice to have 10 graders? Absolutely. But I’m not sure if it’s cost-effective.”
More on the winter storms
Snow collapses roof of Goodwin and Sons, Crestline’s only grocery store
In interview, San Bernardino County sheriff calls criticism of storm response misguided
Coroner: 1 death in San Bernardino Mountains linked to recent storms; 8 others being investigated
California winter weather state of emergency declared by Biden
Big Bear Lake businesses grapple with tourism wipeout
San Bernardino mountain residents still under siege are outraged highways were reopened to visitors
Gerber agreed.
“Even if people are unhappy, they have to understand that there’s no magical resources to drop out of the sky to clear that amount of snow in a limited period of time,” he said.
In places that normally get heavy snow and blizzards, residents plan to be trapped at home, with additional heating fuel, non-perishable food and so on, Gerber said.
“There’s not a quick and easy solution,” he said. “Even if state and local government performs at peak efficiency, the nature of this type of disaster just means that it’s not quickly resolvable.”
San Bernardino County residents should be getting the county’s official analysis of how it responded to the winter storm and how it could better respond to future disasters by mid-September.
“There is no reason for this county to not be the best prepared in the nation” for natural disasters, Rowe said.