Sacramento, CA…Governor Gavin Newsom met with emergency response officials on March 5th at the State Operations Center and received an update on winter storms and the state’s work to support disaster response and relief efforts.

Last week, the Governor proclaimed a state of emergency and activated the California Guard and State Operations Center to bring state support to county-led emergency response efforts and coordinate mutual aid from neighboring jurisdictions.

Significant numbers of state personnel are on the ground supporting affected areas, including from the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), Caltrans, the California Highway Patrol, CAL FIRE, and the California National Guard working closely with the county-led Incident Command to rapidly deploy resources and address emergency management needs.

Statewide, CAL FIRE and other state agencies have 24 crews active to help communities impacted by winter storms. That includes six crew strike teams (totaling 12 crews) committed to the San Bernardino Storm incident.

Over 57 Caltrans employees operating 40 high-powered pieces of equipment, including graders, loaders, dump trucks, snow plows and blowers, have removed more than 7.2 million cubic yards of snow off state highways in San Bernardino County as of March 4, which equates to nearly 2,270 Olympic-size swimming pools. In addition, private contractors have removed another 970,000 cubic yards of snow from state routes 18 and 330.

Cal OES has worked with local officials to open two shelters in Redlands and Lake Arrowhead for residents in San Bernardino County and is coordinating with law enforcement to escort power companies, food and water deliveries and service providers for vulnerable populations.

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