Facing raging waters: ‘We go from dealing with fires and being in a drought — then this’

A South Valley resident who lives along the foothills watched as her house became surrounded by water due to Friday’s continuous rain.

And that wasn’t the most concerning scene Mary Farmer said she came across amid the start of this weekend’s atmospheric river storm that is expected to run through Sunday.

“I’ve got a river running along my property,” said Farmer, who lives east of Porterville just north of Lake Success — one of the hardest-hit areas in the central San Joaquin Valley in Friday’s storm.

Yet it was Farmer’s morning drive to work that frightened her most, she said, after getting a close look at the rain’s power in transforming recently fallen snow into raging waters.

And cause flooding all around.

“It was insane,” Farmer said.

Farmer said she came across two scenes that concerned her during her 7:30 a.m. drive toward Eagle Mountain Casino.

First, Farmer said she noticed how the rain caused much of the lower-level snow that had fallen two weeks ago to melt.

In turn, the melted snow became part of the strong currents of water that gushed down from the elevated areas toward Lake Success.

Farmer said she was shocked to see the bridge portion of Highway 190 that usually goes over the lake suddenly covered in water. She estimated the water to be about 7 to 10 feet above ground level.

“You could hear the roar, and you could feel the intense pressure of water,” Farmer said. “I’ve been here 35 years. I’ve never seen the lake roaring like that before.

“That was pretty scary.”

Nonetheless, Farmer continued on with her morning commute to within a couple of miles of Eagle Mountain Casino.

There, the main road to the casino had flooded with the South Fork Tule River overflowing.

And the river wasn’t just flowing with water but debris from dead trees burned in past wildfires. Seeing that combination of charred wood pieces floating along a flooded road caused Farmer to get a bit emotional.

“We go from dealing with fires and being in a drought — then this,” Farmer said. “It’s unbelievable to see. Burnt trees are clogging the river.

“The people in this area have been through a lot.”

Farmer said she eventually learned the casino was closed for the day.

The Tulare County Sheriff’s Office went on to close portions of Highway 190 out of safety concerns .

Upon her return home, Farmer saw a stream of water flowing down from the foothills through her property.

Nonetheless, Farmer said she’s electing to remain at her home rather than evacuate.

“I didn’t want to leave,” Farmer explained. “I feel like I’ll be OK. Where everything is running off, I have 2 acres of property, so the water is not really running directly into my home.”

Then, Farmer paused for a moment.

“Hope it stays that way.”