Officials have seen a small number of sandbags picked up from various locations and have been working with the Los Angeles County Flood Control District to inform homeowners that they are in hazardous areas.
“They’ve looked at private property to give recommendations if [the homeowner] desires,” Zurn said. “But we don’t have any indication that any of the measures have taken place. What we see in the frontyard areas, little has been done.”
A few residents huddled with Glendale officials Monday night to coordinate and prepare for the threat of flash floods and debris flows that may affect the area this winter.
Glenoaks Canyon residents Jim and Karen Hoffman were evacuated last summer from their home that borders the fire road.
“We’ve had a geologist come and make suggestions, and we want to see what the city has to say,” Jim Hoffman said.
Houses that back up against the torched hillside, like the Hoffmans’ home, are particularly at risk, Zurn said.
“It’s really a matter of being vigilant on our part and getting the word out,” he said. “I’d rather err on the side of caution and overdoing it rather than someone saying ‘I didn’t know.’”
Only a few homes abut the canyon.
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” Karen Hoffman said. “Why not spend a half-day preparing . . . instead of worrying when something happens?”
The city has been prepping public right-of-ways and infrastructure in the area against heavy rain runoff, including installing some K-rails, which are concrete barriers intended to control debris flows.
Some residents in the northern portion of the city affected by the post-Station fire preparations have expressed unhappiness with the K-rails. County officials have said the barriers will likely be in place for at least three years as the hillsides regrow their protective brush layers.
Some have suggested alternative precautions that are more flexible.
“We are in this for the long haul, and when we get into the summer months we will talk to residents and look at options,” Zurn said.
“The areas closest to the burn area, there’s a lot of rock up there, and I want to make sure we’re putting in devices that have the best resistance to that debris flow. K-rails are solid; they’re ugly, but they’re solid.”
