Van Vleck Ranch News
Practicing for a Flood
Posted on May 04, 2016
Major disasters in other parts of the country have prompted local authorities to take a closer look at Sacramento. Anyone who owns a home needs to be ready with flood insurance, sandbags and an evacuation route. But if another big flood hits Sacramento, firefighters need to be ready, too. Sacramento and Stockton firefighters and the National Guard's 1-168th Charlie Company, which specializes in medical evacuations, held a training exercise Saturday to see where they stand. Crew members spent the day in Van Vleck Ranch pond near Rancho Murietta to get procedures down. Guardsmen and firefighters practiced using helicopters to get flood victims to safety, particularly victims from highly populated areas. "It's called point-to-point," said Sgt. Donald Morrow of the California National Guard. "We fly to a point, pick up the victim, fly to a point on the shore." Crews repeated the drill throughout the day to make the operation run smoothly if they ever have to do it for real. If you want more information on preparing for flooding, visit