Rain, landslide close California highway
BIG SUR, Calif. — A new storm swept into California Thursday and again forced closure of scenic California 1 in Big Sur where one of its two lanes collapsed into the ocean after heavy weekend rains.
The Monterey County sheriff’s office had warned residents of the region to consider leaving before the highway was shut down Wednesday afternoon, especially if they have medical issues. The route was not expected to reopen until Saturday.
The California Department of Transportation had been cautiously running convoys of residents and essential workers past the slide area in both directions twice daily on the remaining undamaged lane.
Leaving the area requires heading north toward Monterey Bay because a 12-mile stretch of California 1 to the south has been blocked for some time by three previous slides requiring massive repair projects.
The highway slide site got rain early in the day but there was little precipitation through the middle of the day. A second weather disturbance was expected today.
The latest collapse occurred Saturday near Rocky Creek Bridge, temporarily stranding as many as 1,600 people in Big Sur. Most were able to leave when the single lane was reopened Sunday, transportation department spokesperson Kevin Drabinski said earlier this week.
Five state parks were closed indefinitely after the slide and local media reported that the evacuation warning led to the closure of an elementary school and preschool Thursday and today.
Engineers were to remain on site through the storms to watch for any changes, officials said in a statement.