A deluge on Monday afternoon submerged the intersection of 18th and Valencia streets. Yellow Moto, the pizza joint at the intersection, found itself surrounded by ankle-deep water outside, threatening to flow into the restaurant through the crack under its yellow door.
The flooding started around 1:30 p.m., according to Thomas Mukul, a chef at the restaurant.
“It happens every time, when it rains,” said Mukul, who has worked at the restaurant for five years.
He said the owner has notified the city, but no Public Works employees have arrived yet. A Public Works van drove by, but did not address the situation at 18th and Valencia.
Minor flooding at 11 locations were reported citywide as of mid-morning on Monday, but it didn’t include the one at 18th and Valencia streets, according to Rachel Gordon, San Francisco Public Works’ spokesperson. The department handed out a couple hundred sandbags on Monday, she said.
As the heavy rain died down, and started again around 2:50 p.m., a waitress at the restaurant dragged its colorful planter and outdoor dining tables out of the water at the intersection. Cars sped by, making huge splashes that reached the big windows at the corner restaurant.
Pedestrians were blocked by the water, taking detours from the middle of the road or across the central bike lane; adventurous ones trekked through the shallower end of the water.
The restaurant’s side door, which is usually open and closed to the intersection, remains closed on Monday afternoon. But water has come in through the crack under the door.
Employees at Yellow Moto worried that the outdoor dining area will have to close for dinner on Monday evening, and the following storms coming on Tuesday and Wednesday might make the situation worse.
“We are gonna see what happens tonight,” said Mukul.
Businesses on Folsom between 17th and 18th streets, a perennial flood spot, said water had bubbled up there but did not fully flood. Gordon said Public Works and PUC crews were addressing “problem spots” at 17th and Folsom as well as Alemany and Folsom.
Loving the rain,
But, this old firefighter and his dog, Skippy seen this coming.
We’re couple blocks down on 14th and Valencia and have watched the drains do that for 9 years til last year when we got out in the driving rain and cleared drains just for the fun of it.
This year we’ve been proactive and been watching weather and clearing little patches of leaves from gutter as we do our morning volunteer walk and when first heavy rain hit today it worked. Sent pic to Joe and Lydia of our clear intersection same time as others are flooding.
Plus, check the two guys in the edit (just learning) of same pic with guys moving their earthly possessions and 2 dogs across intersection between bands of soaks.
Yuval Harari says: “Tradition is peer pressure from dead peaople.”
Is it Friday already ?
This is when my Seep City map comes in handy. Several creeks converge in the Mission
I adopted two drains at 18th and Valencia (NW and SW corners) via PW’s Adopt a Drain program and cleaned them for nearly a decade before moving from the neighborhood in 2020 (RIP Sir-Drains- A Lot). It looks like they are available for adoption if anyone nearby wants to help clear them.
https://adoptadrain.sfwater.org/#scl
Thanks Mike. I had signed up, but couldn’t remember where the drains were?