Flooding closes Trabuco Canyon Road
Flooding prompted officials to close Trabuco Canyon Road near the border of Rancho Santa Margarita and Trabuco Canyon on Monday, Feb. 4.
Water and debris washed onto sections of the road with enough force to knock over several barriers weighing 8,000 pounds each, the Orange County Department of Public Works said in a tweet.
Officials ordered a closure of the road at 3:10 p.m. from Plano Trabuco to Rose Canyon road, effective until flooding subsides, said Orange County Sheriff’s Lt. Ken Binning.
“If you were to drive up there, you’d see there’s really no way to cross,” he said.
Scene right now at #TrabucoCanyon Rd at Trabuco Creek due to flash flood downstream of #HolyFire burn area. Road closed until further notice. Massive force to move our k-rail barriers-each one weighs approx 8K pounds @ocregister @CBSLA @NBCLA @KTLA @ABC7 @FOXLA @KNX1070 @KFIAM640 pic.twitter.com/IW2CJGTRuh
— OC Public Works (@OCpublicworks) February 5, 2019
Motorists were asked to take alternate routes, and some residents living along the remote road may be forced to wait until conditions improve, said Binning.
The closure came as wet weather continued in the region.
Storms dumped more than 2 inches of rain on the Holy fire burn scar area in the 24 hours ending late Monday afternoon, said National Weather Service Meteorologist Stefanie Sullivan.
She said 3.3 to 6 inches of precipitation came down in the region over the weekend, while only 2 to 3 inches of rain fell in the rest of Orange County. Showers may continue into Wednesday, but should decline in intensity.
“Unless a new storm forms in the area, for the most part, it looks lighter going into the week,” said Sullivan.