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SAN JOSE — Concepcion Romero used to love standing at her kitchen counter cooking up chilaquiles for her husband, Francisco.
The couple bought the quaint house on S. 20th Street more than 30 years ago and relished the tranquility and sense of community in their Olinder Park neighborhood.
But their plans for a quiet retirement abruptly shattered a year ago when water spilled over the edges of Anderson Dam, burst over the banks of Coyote Creek a few blocks to the west and gushed into the neighborhood in one of the worst floods in San Jose’s history.
Water poured into their home, damaging the foundation and ruining their belongings.
A year after the devastating flood forced 14,000 people from their homes, leaving a trail of tragedy and $100 million in damages, officials at San Jose City Hall, Santa Clara County and the Santa Clara Valley Water District say progress has been made to protect San Jose’s flood-prone neighborhoods and correct mistakes that left thousands of residents trapped by the floodwaters.
They’ve installed berms along the banks of the creek, removed invasive plants and improved alert systems that failed spectacularly during the flood.
But for many living in the flood zone, it hasn’t been nearly enough.
The Romeros are part of a new lawsuit brought by more than 150 flood victims against the city, county and water district alleging officials failed to warn them ahead of time of the impending flood and did little to repair their ravaged neighborhoods.
Today, the couple live in a small apartment in an unfamiliar neighborhood that Catholic Charities helped them find and the city helps them afford. The front of their home, once a warm mocha color, is stripped to the frame. They need $20,000 to fix the foundation but have struggled to get a loan and didn’t have flood insurance.
“I feel like I’m in a trauma that I haven’t been able to overcome,” Concepcion, 67, said in Spanish during an interview at her home as Francisco, 70, who has Parkinson’s disease, paced in the background.
Officials have acknowledged a breakdown in communication the day of the flood, which came the Tuesday after the President’s Day holiday weekend. While city officials maintain they were blindsided by the water pouring into neighborhoods adjacent to the creek, water district officials insist they gave the city plenty of information to issue an evacuation well before the flood wreaked its havoc.
Now the city and water district have a “joint emergency action plan” that includes color-coded levels for issuing public alerts. The city purchased loudspeakers to broadcast messages in multiple languages and revamped its emergency alert system so people have to opt out rather than opt in so more residents get alerts on their cellphones than in the past. There’s a new berm along the river bank to prevent flooding, and crews have spent hours removing downed trees and invasive plants that clog the flow of water. There’s also a new agreement that allows the water district to enter city property to maintain the creek. This month, the City Council voted to take out a $21 million loan to repair roads, electrical systems and other facilities damaged in the flood until the city is reimbursed by the state and federal governments.
“I believe we are prepared,” said Richard Santos, director of the water district.
“A lot has changed. Bottom line,” echoed Kip Harkness, San Jose’s deputy city manager.
Still, residents are reeling.
“When I see rain, I get scared,” said 10-year-old Roma Smith on a recent sunny afternoon as she stood in her family’s front yard a few doors down from the Romeros. While everyone else in the state frets about the looming possibility of a water shortage, “the word drought makes me feel safe,” Roma said.
Water flowed into the basement of the family’s teal bungalow, ruining tapes that contained the last traces of her great-grandmother’s voice.
“Every car could’ve been driven to higher ground,” said Geordie Smith, Roma’s dad and a local high school math teacher. “It looked like we lived in the middle of a lagoon.”
Samantha Lopez’s Rock Springs neighborhood to the south looked the same, the 25-year-old recalled recently, and authorities wouldn’t let the family back into the area.
Lopez has lupus and went four days without her medication, which affected her kidneys. Now her doctor is talking about kidney dialysis.
“That’s just the scariest part for me,” she said.
The ultimate goal, said water district spokesman Marty Grimes, is to secure federal funding for a flood protection project that would provide “good long-term protection for all the areas that were flooded.”
The district is on the verge of signing an agreement with the Army Corps of Engineers for a feasibility study that would be a first step toward that funding, Grimes said.
Still, said Amanda Hawes, the attorney handling the new lawsuit, some people have “lost faith in the community.”
The city has denied hundreds of flood claims, claiming no legal liability. City, county and water district officials have responded likewise to the new suit.
“It is unfortunate that the county is being included in this litigation, when the county does not have responsibility for evacuations within city limits,” said county counsel James Williams.
That frustrates flood victims.
“It always ends up looking like a bunch of people pointing fingers at each other,” said Smith, who along with Roma and his wife, Jolene Noel, spent several months living with family while his home was repaired.
A few families affected by the flood have decided to leave the area entirely. But the neighborhoods along Coyote Creek are mostly modest and for most people, the idea of trying to find a home in the current housing market is overwhelming.
Besides, while “I’m afraid this’ll happen again,” Noel said, “I can’t imagine we’d have better neighbors anywhere else.”
Coyote Creek flood of 2017 by the numbers
$100 million – estimated total damage
14,000 – people living in evacuation areas
500 – total homes/apartments damaged
143 – homes significantly damaged
21 – families still in temporary housing paid for by the city
86 – vehicles repaired or replaced by the city
$14.7 million – private, state and local resources raised for flood victims
$27 million – cost of repairing 65 city trails, buildings and facilities
4,000 – volunteers who removed 7,500 metric tons of debris
