KERNVILLE, Calif. (KERO) — As set up for one of the biggest weekends of the year in the Kern River Valley took place, Mother Nature decided to have a little bit of fun as vendors set up for Whiskey Flat Days in Kernville.
- With Whiskey Flat Days set to kick off on Friday, Feb. 14, wet weather looked as if it may cause some scheduling chaos for the long-standing event. Organizers say with the current weather patterns, they do not expect any changes to the weekend, but on the off chance that something happens, they will update the community on their social media page.
- One added wrinkle to the storm for the Kern River Valley was the burn scars left by the Borel Fire and the potential for flooding to occur there. Kern County Fire Public Information Officer Andrew Freeborn said that the county stacked resources all over to have a quick response time if something were to go awry. While the biggest band of rain passed through the area with little concern, Freeborn recommended that Kern residents download the 'Ready Kern' and 'Genasys Connect' apps to stay in the loop.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Just a soggy Thursday in the Kern River Valley, I'm Sam Hoyle, your neighborhood reporter in Kernville and as people set up for one of the best weekends of the year up here in Whiskey Flat Days, Mother Nature decided to have some fun as well.
With the Borel Fire burning through parts of the Kern River Valley last year, one concern with this storm was flooding. The county set up sandbag stations all over for residents to stock up their own bags if they needed, and according to Kern County Fire Public Information Officer Andrew Freeborn, stacked resources all over on the off chance that something went awry.
While the biggest band of already passed over the area as of Thursday evening, Freeborn says residents should still be vigilant and stay up to date as rain continues to fall throughout the evening.
"Don't become complacent. Stay aware of what's going on around you and make sure you're prepared if something does start to get serious, that they can get themselves out of harm's way," said Freeborn. "Sign up on ready Kern, download the Genesys protect app. If something is happening that's going to impact you, that's where those notifications will come from - of evacuation warnings and orders."
And while it was a soggy day, set up for this year's Whiskey Flat Days continued, and for Branden Slichter owner of Bakersfield Barbecue, the rain didn't bring any worries about people coming out or the events being canceled, but made for some interesting setup conditions.
"Fear, no, they'll still come out, though. It looks like it's gonna clear up about noon tomorrow and then Saturday and Sunday. Look great," said Slichter
"What was it like setting up this morning?" asked 23ABC.
"It was cold, it was wet. It was cold and wet for sure," said Slichter.
An added note, Slichter says that all of the proceeds that they get from the weekend will be donated to the Kernville Rodeo.
And if you're worried about the weekend being potentially canceled, we spoke with staff at the Kernville Chamber of Commerce who said they do not expect to see any weather-related impacts to Whiskey Flat Days coming up over the weekend, but on the off chance that changes, they'll be posting updates to their social media pages.
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