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View Winners → Heavy Rains Prompt Mudslide Concerns
Arcadia Weekly Dec 28, 2020
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Sandbags were the most popular items Monday as heavy rains hit L.A. County overnight. | Photo by Terry Miller / Beacon Media News
By Terry Miller
California’s first major storm of the season caused a wallop Sunday night with an impressive thunder and lightning show combined with heavy showers this county hasn’t seen in quite some time.
Monrovia residents are taking the approaching storms seriously, filling dozens of sandbags to prevent mudflow and debris.
Residents of neighborhoods in Arcadia, Monrovia and Pasadena surrounded by charred hillsides made by the Bobcat Fire are building barricades to protect their homes from storm damage.
One of the largest fires in Los Angeles County history, the Bobcat Fire tore through more than 100,000 acres in the San Gabriel Mountains and the Angeles National Forest in September. The flames threatened homes and burned dangerously close to communications equipment on Mount Wilson.
Heavy rainfall could trigger flooding and debris flows in hillside communities. Because of the recent rainfall, Los Angeles County Health Officer Muntu Davis, cautioned residents that bacteria, chemicals, debris, trash, and other public health hazards from city streets and mountain areas are likely to contaminate ocean waters at and around discharging storm drains, creeks, and rivers after a rainfall. Individuals who enter the water in these areas could become ill.
In preparation for the rain, the L.A. County Department of Public Works issued a Phase I Mud and Debris Forecast for the neighborhoods of Ridgeside Drive and Oakglade Drive in Monrovia. A Phase I forecast indicates the possibility of minor to moderate flooding and mudflow/sediment deposition on these streets and below burned hillsides.
If you reside in these areas, travel with caution. Those who do not live in the neighborhoods of Ridgeside Drive and Oakglade Drive should avoid the area.
In the event that there are mud and debris flow, both the L.A. County Department of Public Works and City of Monrovia Public Works will mobilize resources to respond to any mud and debris flow activities.
For additional information on the post-Bobcat Fire mitigation efforts, visit cityofmonrovia.org/BobcatFire.
Recorded information on beach conditions is available 24 hours a day on the County’s beach closure hotline: (800) 525-5662. Information is also available online at: PublicHealth.LACounty.gov/Beach.
