Winter storm triggers mudslide
Officials close part of Pacific Coast Highway after several vehicles become trapped.
The first major storm of the new year moved into Southern California on Saturday night, triggering a mudslide that shut down a section of Pacific Coast Highway and prompted flash flooding and debris flows near burn areas in Los Angeles and Ventura counties.
An automated rain gauge in the western Santa Monica Mountains showed nearly three-quarters of an inch of rainfall in one hour, the National Weather Service said.
PCH was closed from Encinal Canyon Road to west of the Los Angeles County line because of f looding, the city of Malibu tweeted. Three vehicles became stuck in the mud around 7 p.m. where Deer Creek Road intersects the highway.
The mud and debris were about 100 yards wide and up to 4 feet deep, Ventura County Fire Capt. Dennis O’Shea said.
“Some drivers actually stopped by our fire station and rang our doorbell to tell us there was flooding and people were trapped,” he said. “Those folks just happened to be in the worst part of it, and they just got stuck.”
The highway could be closed for at least 24 hours.
“The mud is very silty,” O’Shea said. “It’s quicksandtype mud. It’s super heavy and dangerous.”
A flash-flood watch was issued for the burn areas of the Woolsey and Hill fires, which burned more than 100,000 acres in November, destroyed about 1,600 structures and left three dead.
A half-inch to 1 1⁄2 inches of rainfall was expected along the coasts and valleys, with higher amounts possible along south-facing foothills and mountains, said Kristen Stewart, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
Orange and San Diego counties are expected to see a quarter of an inch to 1 inch of precipitation in some cities over the weekend. The heaviest rain was expected to fall overnight, Stewart said.
Snowfall in the mountain regions of Los Angeles County could reach as low as 4,500 feet, Stewart said. High surf is also predicted from 5 to 8 feet, she said.
Malibu officials have released a map of burn areas that show where the potential for flooding and mudslides is greatest. The city is also providing empty sandbags at Malibu-area fire stations and pre-filled sandbags at the Zuma Beach lifeguard headquarters.
In Ventura County, the city of Oxnard opened a shelter Saturday evening, city officials said. The shelter, at the Armory at 351 North K St., opened at 4 p.m.; if the weather improves, the site will close at 9 a.m. Sunday.
Meanwhile, burn areas in the northern region of the state appeared to escape heavy rainfall as the chilly Pacific storm passed through the area earlier Saturday.
The Bay Area and Northern California saw mostly light rain, including about a half-inch in and around Paradise in Butte County, where the state’s deadliest and most destructive fire burned in November, said Steve Anderson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. The Camp fire charred more than 153,000 acres, destroyed nearly 14,000 homes and killed 86 people.
But the region seemed to sidestep another possible disaster Saturday.
“There are no reports of flooding. It is pretty light rain,” Anderson said.
The heaviest rain in the region — about 2 1⁄4 inches — fell around the Big Sur coast.
The weather outlook for the next several weeks indicates above-normal precipitation; in the next months, the odds are looking good for above-average rainfall, experts said.