'Felt like an earthquake': Sonoma Co. still cleaning up after storms topple trees, wash away roads

""My son was sleeping right there, ten feet away, it felt like an earthquake and explosion," said Mark Weiss. Mark Weiss from Cazadero, made a stunning discovery over the holidays, a 300-foot tall old growth redwood tree toppling during a storm. "After 24 years here, you know the sound of a tree falling hitting a structure or car - it didn't hit anything with people in it," Weiss added."

"Near Monte Rio, a chunk of Highway 116 fell off into the Russian River during heavy rain Monday. Traffic is now reduced to one lane. Caltrans and the fire department say the washout could grow as runoff flows downhill. "What happened - we went down with a boat, underneath is an eddy it cuts through, just sucking away at the bottom -it's going to keep sliding," said Chief Steve Baxman from Monte Rio Fire Department."

"So much rain fell here during the holidays, bringing flooding, falling trees which damaged a home on Bohemian Highway. "The problem we're having now, we had years of drought so we had a lot of dead trees, now they're filling with water and toppling," said Baxman. Signs are posted along the Russian River, warning about raw sewage which spilled into the river this week. It happened after the river overflowed at a sewage treatment plant in Guerneville. The spill has now been stopped, water testing is happening."

Storms over the past two weeks caused extensive damage along the Russian River, toppling trees and washing away roads. A 300-foot old-growth redwood fell in Cazadero, destroying Raymond's Bakery outdoor dining and part of the kitchen and requiring major foundation and wall repairs. A chunk of Highway 116 near Monte Rio collapsed into the river, reducing traffic to one lane and raising concerns of continued erosion as runoff creates an undercutting eddy. Years of drought left many dead trees that filled with water and toppled. A sewage treatment plant overflowed in Guerneville, spilling raw sewage into the river; the spill has been stopped and water testing is underway.

Read at ABC7 San Francisco