The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will talk about flood safety along the San Gabriel River at RHA town hall, according to Rossmoor Homeowners Association President Ralph Vartabedian.
If Rossmoor ever gets hit with the BIG ONE, it might not be the earthquake that you think about, Vartabedian said in a press release.
Scientists predict that in some year, some decade or some century, an epic downpour will flood most of the Los Angeles basin.
The probability is only 1 in 900, but the consequences will be more devastating than any earthquake.
And since Rossmoor sits adjacent to the mighty San Gabriel River and parts of our community are less than a dozen feet above sea level, we are more vulnerable than a lot of other places.
And the safety of our people depends, not only in an epic flood but in many heavy rain storms, on the integrity of earthen and concrete levees that rise higher than the streets of Rossmoor.
In its efforts to inform the community, the Rossmoor Homeowners Association is sponsoring a town hall on the San Gabriel River levee and flood control system.
We are lucky to have as our featured speaker Lillian Doherty, chief of the operations division at the Los Angeles offices of the Army Corps of Engineers. The Corps has been an essential part of the Southern California flood control system for decades.
Lillian has a special interest in Rossmoor, since she is one of our own community. She also knows a lot the risks of a flood. She had to evacuate from New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.
So come on out to the Rossmoor Park community center on May 21 at 7 p.m. You might want to get there early if you want a seat.
For more background, read this: https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-ln-mega-storm-dam-failure-20190218-story.html.
