Worst flooding in decades submerges Highway 101, Tiburon Peninsula roads, knocks out 911
- Kevin Hessel
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
A pickup truck was abandoned on the Redwood Highway frontage road at De Silva Island Drive in Strawberry while inbound Tiburon Boulevard was fully submerged about 11 a.m. Jan. 3, shortly after the peak king tide, which also flooded both directions of Highway 101 at Lucky Drive in Corte Madera. (Kevin Hessel / The Ark; Amy Rennert)
A four-day deluge of king tides and atmospheric-river storms Jan. 1-4 brought the worst coastal flooding to Marin County in nearly three decades, submerging Highway 101 and local roads while temporarily knocking out 911 service countywide.
Tides climbed 2½ feet above normal at the San Francisco gauge Jan. 3, the fourth highest on record and matching levels unseen since Feb. 6, 1998, according to the National Weather Service.
Highway 101 at Lucky Drive in Corte Madera was submerged at the peak, as was the Redwood Highway frontage road at De Silva Island Drive in Strawberry, Tiburon Boulevard’s inbound lanes near the 76 gas station and adjacent Greenwood Cove Drive, as well as downtown Beach Road. Belvedere Mayor Sally Wilkinson told the Marin Independent Journal that Beach Road along the cove faced bay waters that rose to within inches of overtopping, while Tiburon Councilmember Holli Thier said flooded equipment caused business power outages along Main Street. Some 1,500 homes reportedly lost electricity across Tiburon and Marin City.
Meanwhile, floodwaters submerged an AT&T communications hub in San Rafael about 8:30 p.m. Jan. 4, crippling emergency dispatch and forcing officials to urge residents in need of aid to go directly to fire stations, according to media reports. Service was restored by 1 a.m. Jan. 5.
The weather pattern shifts this week, with rain tapering off through Jan. 7 and high pressure arriving Jan. 8, according to National Weather Service forecasts. Dry conditions are expected through at least Jan. 13.
This story will be updated. Look for complete coverage in our Jan. 14 edition.