January 5, 2005

Party crasher

Mother Nature rings in New Year with a roar

Fortunately for attendees of Precious Pre-School on Redmond Avenue, the playground was empty when a branch fell from a large pine tree and collapsed a section of school fencing along Mancuso Street. Photo by Kymberli Brady

High winds claimed a towering pine on Crossgates Lane, which narrowly missed uprooting the home it shaded for nearly 30 years. Photo by Kymberli Brady

By Kymberli W. Brady
Staff Writer

While 2005 ended with the traditional countdown, cheers and toasts, Mother Nature crashed Saturday’s New Year festivities in ways only she could, leaving Bay Area residents cleaning up after her and making the national news.

Record rainfall from a warm “Pineapple Express” series of storms resulted in a number of problems, including a breeched Solano County Levee on the Sacramento River, mudslides from Santa Rosa to Santa Cruz, and an overflowing Russian River that left Napa and Guerneville residents flooded out of their homes.

In San Jose, residents awoke on New Year’s Day to uprooted trees, fallen fences, and downed power lines following the latest storm that brought with it high winds and recorded 60-70 mph gusts.

The storm left its mark on Almaden in several forms—tree- and debris-covered roads, a towering pine on Crossgates Lane that narrowly missed uprooting the home it shaded for nearly 30 years, bowed steel poles and fencing along Castillero Middle School tennis courts, and an aging oak tree at the Union 76 station on the corner of Redmond and Meridian that gave in to her fury, taking down tangled power lines with it in a blaze—adding some in Almaden to the list of 4,000 San Jose customers who spent much of the day without power.

The New Year may have gotten off to a roaring start while Mother Nature tested our handiwork, but she couldn’t crush the spirit of goodwill in Almaden. At the end of the day, many found themselves rallying to the aid of neighbors with hammers and chainsaws in hand—shoring up downed fences or assisting with fallen trees that left roads impassable and homeowners trapped.

Two downed trees block the northbound lanes of Meridian Avenue near Redmond, following a New Year storm that brought with it wind gusts up to 70 mph. Photo by Kymberli Brady	Several trees fell victim to the storm at Almaden Golf and Country Club, blocking pathways and altering the golf course. Photo by Lorraine Gabbert
After more than 30 years standing, an aging oak tree at the Union 76 station on the corner of Redmond and Meridian gave way to Mother Nature’s New Year’s fury, taking down tangled power lines in a blaze of sparks and smoke. The area was one of several with downed lines that left an estimated 4,000 San Jose customers without power for much of the New Year’s Day. Photos by Lorraine Gabbert
	Despite rain and high winds powerful enough to bend steel poles along Castillero Middle School tennis courts to the ground around them, siblings Joseph and Katherine Pugliese of nearby Hirabayashi Street play some one-on-one for basketball bragging rights. “We’re just trying to keep moving since the power went out this morning,” said Joseph, 23, a Georgia Tech student home for the holidays. “Actually, it’s kind of fun,” added 16-year-old Lincoln High student and younger sister Katherine, “Unless you’re shooting into the wind.” Photos by Kymberli Brady