Some Madera County residents concerned as more snow falls in mountains

MADERA COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- Several feet of snow have fallen on the mountains of Madera County since last week.

At first, the snow made for a winter dream but now, some say it is the stuff of nightmares.

"It started out being pretty, it started out being fun but I'm kind of beyond the novelty at this moment. Now, everyone's worried about 'are you warm? Do you have water? Do you have food?'" said Kris Hamilton, resident of Cascadel Heights.

Hamilton's house is running on a generator because power has been out since Friday.

"Phones can be charged here but not everyone can get here and we cannot plow the driveways to get them here," said Hamilton.

Hamilton and her neighbors have been using small tractors to plow as much snow as they can, but she says it's just not enough to tackle the road.

"We have about 6,000 people without power -- who have been without power since Friday. Some of those people are not able to leave their homes because of the unprecedented snowfall," said Madera County Sheriff Tyson Pogue.

He said his deputies have been responding to several requests for food and medication drop offs.

The Red Cross has also opened a warming shelter at the Oakhurst Community Center (39800 Fresno Flats Rd. Oakhurst, CA 93644) for those who are able to get there. It is open from 9 am to 6 pm.

Hamilton says she's concerned about an emergency happening in her neighborhood, and being cut-off from town, especially as more snow is in the forecast.

The County says it is working with contractors to get snow removed from the roads as quickly as possible.

"The Madera County crews, they're out there working all night all day, they're doing everything they can to get things cleared up to get services restored as we can," said Sheriff Pogue.

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