SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Stormy weather is expected to move into San Diego County early next week, and the City of San Diego says crews are already preparing communities that are especially vulnerable to flooding. That includes Southcrest, a neighborhood that experienced devastating flooding in 2024.
City officials say crews are preparing for Monday’s storm by increasing monitoring and maintenance across the city. In total, the city will be watching nearly 46,000 storm drains, including several in flood-prone areas such as Mission Valley, Sorrento Valley, and Southcrest.
Ramon Galindo, a senior public information officer with the city, said much of the work has been happening throughout the year.
“We’ve been doing a lot of channel maintenance throughout the year,” said Ramon Galindo.
Galindo said crews have focused heavily on storm drains and channels to prevent water from backing up once rain begins to fall.
“We’ve had crews out there in those areas cleaning the drains so that there’s not accumulation — so the water can keep flowing once it does start raining,” he said.
In addition to deploying pumps and sandbags, the city says crews have been clearing large amounts of debris and vegetation from storm channels, including increased maintenance along Chollas Creek.
“We’ve done a lot of neighborhoods in that South San Diego area along the Chollas Creek in hopes to keep those channels clear and keep the water flowing,” Galindo said.
The extra preparation comes just weeks after heavy rain turned streets in Southcrest into rivers. Near Southcrest Community Park, residents rushed to clear the neighborhood’s only storm drain as floodwaters rose.
Galindo said the city is taking a proactive approach this time and will have crews ready to respond as soon as problems are reported.
“We will have crews there to respond and take care of these service calls as soon as possible,” he said.
Even though Monday is a holiday, Galindo said city employees will still be working during the storm.
“If there’s any sort of flooding or other storm-related issue happening near the channels or in Mission Valley, there will be employees there to respond,” he said.
City officials are also reminding residents to report flooding, blocked drains, or other storm-related concerns using the city’s Get It Done app so crews can be dispatched quickly.
“We can’t have eyes everywhere, but we need everyone’s help to let us know where the issues are, and we will have city staff ready to respond to these calls,” Galindo said.
