Crews clearing roads and downed trees in Merced after weekend storm

MERCED COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- Crews are working hard to clean up from the weekend storm in Merced while also preparing for the next wave of rain.

"It's heavy. I can't move it by myself," said Merced resident Eric Hodge.

Hodge woke up to a nightmare on Monday morning.

During a windy and rainy storm, a tree fell and destroyed his van.

"That's structural damage. Yeah, that's structural damage there, yeah," Hodge explained.

He says he will have a hard time getting to work now.

"How am I supposed to get to work this morning? I mean, the wind blew it down and messed my window and stuff like that," said Hodge.

Hodge is one of many people in Merced affected by the powerful storm.

"I was in my office doing some paperwork, and I heard a crash," recalled Larry Watson, a resident of Merced.

Watson says he ran outside to see his neighbor's truck smashed by a tree branch.

"We all ran out and helped chop up the tree and clean the area up," said Watson.

The Merced Public Works Department is hard at work cleaning up the mess left behind by the storm.

"It was definitely a windy day and a lot of rain," said Merced Fire Chief Derek Parker.

Chief Derek Parker with the Merced Fire Department says crews have been keeping roads clear and responding to calls of downed trees.

"No persons were hurt. Our crews were out working diligently through the day and the night to make sure that things were taken care of," Parker said.

With more rain on the way, Parker encourages people to be cautious of their surroundings.

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