Efforts to repair, reopen Riverside County roads scheduled this week

Some Riverside County roads remained closed Sunday as a result of damages caused by tropical storm Hilary, and work was scheduled to begin Monday.

“Hurricane Hilary has caused upwards of $100 million in damage countywide, with the vast majority of the impacts on the Coachella Valley, especially on transportation infrastructure including Interstate 10,  State Route 62, major city corridors and to multiple county roadways that sustained substantial damage and will require significant repairs,” according to Supervisor Victor Manuel Perez.

According to Perez, the Rio Del Sol Road, which is closed from Varner Road and running alongside Thousand Palms and Cathedral City is a priority to reopen as it provides access to the Coachella Valley Animal Campus and Animal Samaritans veterinary clinic and local businesses. The county and city were coordinating on repairs and determining what was needed to reopen the roadway.

Emergency work on Thousand Palms Canyon Road was scheduled to start Monday and take roughly one week to complete. Thousand Palms Canyon Road, which runs between Thousand Palms, Indio Hills and Sky Valley was closed due to downed power lines.

In Thermal and Oasis, Harrison Street between Avenue 58 and Avenue 66 remained closed due to downed power lines. The Imperial Irrigation District was working to repair the downed power lines so the roadway can be reopened.

In the Mecca and North Shore area, county maintenance personnel were assisting with the reopening of Avenue 66 at Pierce Street.

Box Canyon Road was also closed between Mecca and Interstate 10 near Chiriaco Summit, according to Perez. A contractor was hired and scheduled to start work on Monday. There was no time frame on when the roadway will be reopened.

According to the Riverside County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, the most significant rain dropped on the upper Mission Creek northwest of Desert Hot Springs, which received 13 inches, nine inches of which fell in six hours.

There were multiple county road closures in the Desert Hot Springs area, including North Indian Canyon Drive, Mission Lakes Boulevard, Worsley Road and Mission Creek Road. Due to the significant storm flows coming out of Mission Creek Canyon and adjacent canyons, many streets crossing Mission Creek were overtopped with significant sediment, damaged or completely washed out, Perez’s office reported.

“Recovery from a natural disaster such as this can often be a long and difficult process,” said Perez. “I want to thank the Riverside County Transportation Department and our emergency contractors for their efforts to repair and reopen these vital roads as soon as possible.”

Perez represents the 4th District on the Riverside County Board of Supervisors, which covers eastern Riverside County from Whitewater, stretching across the Coachella Valley south to the Salton Sea, up Highway 74 to Idyllwild and the mountain communities, and east of the Coachella Valley to Blythe and the Colorado River.

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