With the storms that impacted Northern California in early January, many people were either trapped or displaced due to heavy rainfall and winds. Rural areas in particular were heavily affected by the storms, as the services are less available and less up-to-date in these areas.
The flooding of the roads in particular trapped people and prevented many people from being able to work or go to school. I, for example, was unable to go to work in Stockton, because Highway 99 flooded. Several other roads were closed off as well, which cut off the southern part of Sacramento County to San Joaquin County.
The severity of the storms required state and federal leaders to call a state of emergency in Northern California. The declaration of a state of emergency allowed for the state of California to receive federal funding. Californians affected by the storms can apply for disaster assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). FEMA, after the disaster has been declared, released a press statement saying, “The state of California and FEMA are committed to providing equal access to all state and federal disaster assistance programs while helping residents recover from severe storms and flooding that began Dec. 27, 2022.”
However, there is only one FEMA Disaster Recovery Center in San Joaquin County, and it’s located in Stockton. Individuals that live in areas that were heavily flooded, like Acampo, are unlikely to be able to travel to the center safely. Federal disaster assistance can be reached through the Internet from DisasterAssistance.gov, but that does require Internet connection.
The power outages have also disproportionately affected rural areas and towns as well. PG&E announced that there were around 10,000 customers without power in the town of Ripon, which only has a population of around 14,000 people.
The disparity in services being provided to rural areas will impact poor and disabled individuals the most, since being able to drive is such a large factor in being able to receive services.