Earthquake Evacuation Causes Massive Traffic On Hecker Pass

Anyone heading to Watsonville on Friday ran into some serious issues—with traffic, not tsunami, that is.

The tsunami warning issued Friday morning had Santa Cruz County residents literally heading for the hills, so people looking for higher ground headed up highways 152, then camped out waiting for the tsunami danger to pass.

Gilroy residents–and the rest of Santa Clara County–were largely out of danger when reports of the tsunami started to come in.

"In Santa Clara County, we are monitoring the event but we don't anticipate any impact, but it's a situation that could change," said Kirstin Hofmann, county director of emergency services.

The two-lane mountain road was packed with vehicles from Mount Madonna on into Santa Clara County. Things got so thick, the California Highway Patrol was called out to direct traffic.

Watsonville was a ghost town by mid-morning, according to Watsonville police Sgt. Saul Gonzalez .

“I think it was just ... people woke up and heard the news and kind of freaked out,” he said. “The streets are dead. I think everyone left."

Luis Cordova and Claudia Soltelo were at the picnic and hiking area on the Gilroy side of Hecker Pass with their children, Gared and Louisa. The Watsonville family fled their home after a neighbor called them at 2:30 a.m. to warn them about the tsunami. Hours later, the were sitting on a table with some snacks.

"We've been waiting a long time," Cordova said, "This is like a long picnic."

Watsonville siblings Diego and Claudia Hernandez were also among the refugees.

“Around five in the morning, my grandma called," Claudia Hernandez said. "I really got scared. At that time, we didn't know what to do."

But no tsunami-related problems were reported in Watsonville, authorities said.

"It was more traffic, panicky-type stuff. There were a couple of skirmishes the gas pumps," Gonzalez said.

Hofmann said that she encourages Santa Clara County residents and employees in the county to sign up for Alert SCC, an emergency notification program, at http://www.alertscc.com/.

Milpitas Patch Local Editor Adelaide Chen and Gilroy Patch Local Editor Eric Gneckow contributed to this report.