North Bay family ‘doing good, for sure’ after tree destroys home during storm

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A Guerneville family is rebounding and receiving community support nearly one week after their home was destroyed by a fallen tree that just barely missed a 3-year-old girl as she slept in her crib during a raging winter storm just one day before Christmas.

Now living at a Windsor hotel, the family has had time to take a breather and reflect on the damage that forced them out of their home of nearly four years on Highway 116 near Riverside Drive. Aside from bruises, all are alive and are “doing good, for sure,” said Diego Montaño, 21, who was among those living on the property.

Community members have rallied to support the family, offering food and housing and launching a Go Fund Me fundraiser that’s collected nearly $5,000 as of Monday afternoon. Montaño’s 3-year-old niece had been taken to a hospital as a precaution but is now with her family, happy and smiling.

“She’s a pretty strong girl,” Montaño said.

The destruction occurred the morning of Dec. 24 as Sonoma County was pounded by gusts reaching 79 mph at the highest elevations. Trees had become more prone to falling following several days of rain that saturated soil across the region.

The conditions were part of an atmospheric river storm that started Dec. 19 and trailed off the day after Christmas. It dumped 5.33 inches of precipitation at the Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport, the National Weather Service’s main reporting station in Sonoma County. Higher elevations, such as Venado, got significantly more rain but the region avoided significant flooding.

The lower Russian River crested Friday afternoon at 21.46 feet, more than 10 feet below flood stage in Guerneville.

Forecasters had warned gusts would be the dominant factor in any damage, particularly in the wooded region of western Sonoma County. They arrived in two waves: Tuesday night into Wednesday morning and Wednesday night through Thursday morning.

The strongest gusts developed Wednesday morning and widespread power outages were being reported to Pacific Gas & Electric. By afternoon that day, more than 17,000 PG&E customers in Sonoma County were without power.

Area law enforcement and road crews handled blocked roads as local residents were confronted with possibilities that their Christmas celebrations would be ruined. Ultimately, weather cleared up and rain subsided by Friday.

In the end, no major injuries were reported and the Guerneville home appeared to be the property with the most significant damage. The same tree that hit the home also hit three parked vehicles. All belonged to a neighbor. Montaño said his family’s vehicles were drivable after having broken windows and body damage.

For now, the family expects to be staying at the hotel through the end of the month. They can no longer return to their home on Highway 116 and must begin the search for new housing. In the meantime, the community support continues.

“There are no words to really express how grateful we are,” Montaño said.

You can reach Staff Writer Colin Atagi at colin.atagi@pressdemocrat.com.