Marin County residents prepare for more rain, Thanksgiving king tides

With more rain in the forecast and some of the year's highest tides approaching, Marin County residents are taking steps to protect their homes and businesses from potential flooding.

At Jackson's Hardware in San Rafael, sandbags and other flood-prevention supplies have been in high demand following Friday's storm, which left standing water in parts of the county.

"We have around 1,000 sandbags right here," said Pablo, a salesman at the store, where customers have been picking up bundles of 100. One customer purchased 500 sandbags in a single day, he said.

Demand for rain gear, generators and other emergency supplies has also surged over the past two weeks.

"I've had people call in panicking, 'I need this and that. We're going to get stuck here,'" said Matt, the store's floor manager.

Matt lives nearby and said he has filled about 75 sandbags to protect his own home. Although his neighborhood hasn't flooded in roughly a decade, he said memories of past flooding have residents on edge.

"People who've lived there a long time — they're really panicking," he said. "So they're scaring me and my wife and everybody in the neighborhood."

In low-lying areas of Corte Madera, those concerns are rooted in recent history. Nearly a year ago, a combination of king tides and a storm surge flooded parts of Marin County, closing Highway 101 and inundating homes and businesses.

For Nick Milani, owner of an auto shop in Greenbrae, the flooding was something he had never experienced in decades of business.

"The shop's been around since 1972. It's never flooded before," Milani said.

On New Year's Day, his business took on about an inch of water, causing an estimated $30,000 in damage.

Milani said the flooding occurred during an approximately eight-foot king tide, compounded by a four-foot storm surge. Since then, he has invested about $20,000 in floodwalls and other preventative measures to protect his business.

Now, another potential test is approaching.

King tides are expected Nov. 24 through Nov. 26, including Thanksgiving Day. The tides are predicted to be among the highest of the year, raising concerns about the possibility of additional flooding if another storm moves through the region.

Milani said Nov. 25 is particularly concerning, with an eight-foot king tide forecast.

"If there's a storm, the same thing that happened January 1 is going to happen," he said.

The combination of heavy rainfall, storm surge and unusually high tides can increase the risk of coastal and low-lying areas flooding, particularly in places that have experienced problems in the past.

With more rain in the immediate forecast, residents are already taking precautions rather than waiting for water to rise.

At Jackson's Hardware, Matt has a simple message for neighbors who may be vulnerable to flooding: "Come on in and get your sandbags."

Officials are urging residents in flood-prone areas to prepare ahead of the Nov. 24-26 king tides by taking steps now to protect their homes and businesses.