Voluntary evacuations issued for Camarillo Springs
CAMARILLO SPRINGS, Calif. (KABC) -- Camarillo Springs residents were still cleaning up from last week's devastating mud and debris flow as another storm brought more rain Tuesday.
Work crews repositioned K-rails at the base of the mountain in the Camarillo Springs burn area. The homeowners' association, city and USDA's emergency Watershed Protection Program paid for the preventative measures.
A voluntary evacuation was in place for the Camarillo Springs area, including San Como Lane and Gitana Avenue. The Ventura County Fire Department was expected to bolster staffing around 8 p.m. in anticipation of flooding.
Several homes on San Como Lane were severely damaged last Friday when heavy rain pushed mud and rocks down the fire-ravaged hillside behind their homes. Residents have been removing the belongings they can salvage from their red-tagged homes.
Steve Shiraishi worried about the latest rainfall triggering another mudflow.
"The condition of anything wet, if we don't get it out, it's going to get worse, so we're going to try and preserve some of the photographs if we can," said Shiraishi, whose parents' bedroom was filled with 3 feet of mud.
Some mud seeped into Kathryn Turney's house, but she's not sticking around to see what could happen next. Her daughter told her to leave for safety reasons.
"It's heartbreaking to see what's happened here. We never expected anything like this. Some people have lived here 28 years and never had a problem," Turney said.
Neighbors whose homes were untouched by the mud and rocks won't let Mother Nature erode their sense of community.
"It's a paradise and it will continue to be a paradise, because there's more than just brick and mortar in a community, there's the heart and soul of the people," Hal Hyman said.
Meantime, private security has been hired after looting was reported in the homes affected by the mud flow. A home was burglarized during last Friday's mandatory evacuation; more than $11,000 worth of jewelry was stolen.
