Rain or shine, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) is preparing year-round for heavy rain, never knowing when the next big storm will hit. The National Weather Service predicts wet weather will hit San Francisco starting Tuesday afternoon, lasting until at least Friday. To prepare for rain, the SFPUC’s Storm Watch Team has been…
Category: Rain Ready
How a San Francisco Drain Becomes Part of the Family
Nestled on the bottom of a steep San Francisco hill is ‘Donna’ the drain. “One time someone dumped wallpaper paste or some kind of white hardened stuff into Donna. I had to scrape it off her grate with a silverware knife. That is the one time I got fed up with the mistaken notion anything…
The Rainy Season is A-Coming… And Here’s What YOU Can Do to Protect Your Property
With the official start of the wet weather season on October 15, it’s time to revisit what San Franciscans can do to prepare and a few updates on what the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) has been doing: the agency’s Storm Watch team tracks the weather and checks low-lying neighborhoods on a regular basis,…
Meet Local Students Who Became Drain Heroes
A few weeks before shelter-in place was mandated in San Francisco, Kelly Newman, a science teacher for middle and high school students at St. John’s Academy, adopted several drains close to the school as part of the SFPUC’s Adopt a Drain Program. An advocate for watershed programs, Newman wanted to teach her students awareness about ecosystems, the environment, ground water, and wastewater. “It is so important to me to educate students…
While Shelter-In-Place Orders are in Effect, the SFPUC Stormwatch and Strike Teams Prepare for Rain
According to the National Weather Service, there is a good chance of rain this weekend and potentially through early next week. Even as residents are sheltering-in-place, the SFPUC is gearing up in preparation for the wet weather. So as most people are indoors, peering out of window sills, the SFPUC’s Stormwatch and Strike Teams are…
Crews Work Quickly to Fix Sewer Main Blockage at George Sterling Park
On December 17, the City’s 3-1-1 Customer Service Center received a call reporting “water leaking down some steps onto the street from an unknown source” at George Sterling Park. The park sits on a landscaped hilltop with paths, benches with views of the Golden Gate Bridge. “I dispatched crews out there asap to get eyes…