LOS ANGELES — Crews worked on Friday to free dozens of vehicles after a mudslide covered a central California highway in several feet of muck, even as authorities sought to re-open part of a key interstate also covered in mud from heavy rains, officials said.
The two roads were closed on Thursday when flash floods hit parts of the state. Forecasters warned on Friday of possible thunderstorms that could trigger more flash floods going into the weekend.
In Kern County on State Route 58 in the Tehachapi Pass, about 60 miles north of Los Angeles, a mudslide on Thursday left nearly 200 vehicles, including 75 tractor-trailer trucks, stuck in up to 5 feet of mud, local sheriff’s spokesman Ray Pruitt said.
Most vehicles remained trapped on Friday, after authorities placed nearly 300 stranded motorists and passengers in shelters overnight, Pruitt said. A handful of motorists chose to stay in their vehicles overnight, he said.
“It’s going to be a huge project to try to get this road cleared,” Pruitt said, adding that it could take days.
Heavy rains on Thursday sent tons of mud streaming onto Interstate 5 along the Grapevine mountain pass about 50 miles north of Los Angeles, shutting down the region’s main north-south highway, California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) officials said.
The interstate segment remained closed on Friday morning as crews swept the road surface of mud and other debris and cleared drainage culverts, Caltrans spokeswoman Lauren Wonder said.
Authorities said they hoped to reopen the Grapevine section later in the day, after geologists checked the stability of the adjacent hillside.
The Leona Valley, about 20 miles north of Los Angeles, saw the greatest downpours on Thursday, with 3.58 inches of rain falling — most of that in a 30-minute period — and golf ball-sized hail thrown into the mix, National Weather Service meteorologist Robbie Munroe said.
Elsewhere in Southern California, several roads were washed out and there were reports of motorists having to be rescued from torrential flooding in northern Los Angeles County, he said.
A flash flood watch remained posted through Friday evening, advising of storm conditions that could unleash flash flooding in several mountain areas and in northern Los Angeles County’s Antelope Valley, which saw heavy flooding on Thursday.
There was also a slight chance of thunderstorms returning to the region on Saturday and Sunday, Munroe said.