LOS ANGELES (AP) – The first significant storm of the season brought snow and downpours to Southern California in the United States (US)that doused wildfires and caused some ash and mud to flow across streets in the Los Angeles area.
More than 2.5 centimetres of rain fell in many areas, loosening Los Angeles hillsides burned bare by the recent blaze near the Pacific Palisades neighborhood, where crews cleared inundated roadways including the famed Pacific Coast Highway.
In neighbouring Malibu, four schools were closed on Monday “due to dangerous road conditions,” the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District said in a statement.
Clouds were clearing, but flood watches from lingering pockets of rain were still in effect for fire-scarred areas of the Palisades, Altadena and Castaic Lake.
“All these fresh burns are very susceptible to rapid runoff,” said a meteorologist for the National Weather Service’s office for Los Angeles Joe Sirard.
North of Los Angeles, snowy conditions shut down the mountainous Tejon Pass section of Interstate 5, a key north-south artery for the state. It reopened on Monday afternoon. The highway rises to more than 1,250 metres between LA and the San Joaquin Valley, making it susceptible to storm closures.
Mountains across San Bernardino and Riverside counties were under a winter storm warning and were forecast to get about 0.30 metres of snow from the storm. Chains were required for some vehicles heading to ski resorts in the Big Bear Lake area northeast of Los Angeles because of icy roads.
Parts of San Diego County received more than an inch of rain, while other areas got less.
The rain began on Saturday after months of dry and often gusty weather that created dangerous fire conditions.
Los Angeles County crews spent much of last week removing vegetation, shoring up slopes and reinforcing roads in areas devastated by the Palisades and Eaton fires, which reduced entire neighbourhoods to rubble and ash after breaking out during powerful winds on January 7. The Palisades Fire, the largest of the blazes that destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 12 people, reached 94 per cent containment on Monday. The Eaton Fire, which broke out near Altadena and has killed at least 17 people, was 98 per cent contained.
The Hughes Fire, which ignited north of Los Angeles last week and caused evacuation orders or warnings for more than 50,000 people, was nearly contained.
Downpours in San Diego County, helped firefighters make significant progress against the smaller Border 2 Fire churning through a remote area of the Otay Mountain Wilderness near the US-Mexico border.
