Showers and thunderstorms in drought-stricken southern and central California set rainfall records in what is usually a dry month. In contrast, moisture from Tropical Storm Dolores is streaming northward from the eastern Pacific into southern California and Arizona with rain and thunderstorms. Saturday’s 0.36 inches of rainfall downtown broke the July 14, 1886, record of 0.24 inches – a almost 130-year record.
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The interstate bridge that washed out in the desert between Los Angeles and Phoenix easily withstood its daily load of thousands of cars and trucks, but the pounding of an unusually powerful flash flood scoured away the land where the bridge was anchored, officials said Monday.
The summer storm helped firefighters advance on two wildfires that broke out Friday, including one that forced the closure of another key Southern California freeway.
“The 10 is a dire situation”, California transportation spokeswoman Terri Kasinga told the Riverside Press-Enterprise.
The collapsed Tex Wash bridge struck the adjacent westbound bridge, also closed indefinitely.
Kasinga said engineers will not be able to assess the damage and start planning repairs until Monday morning. It collapsed Sunday during heavy rains, indefinitely severing a major artery between Southern California and Arizona.
No date has been announced as to when the bridge will be reopened, however crews have rushed from other projects to inspect the site.
Hundreds of vehicles were stranded directly after the bridge’s collapse, however California Highway Patrol worked to divert the drivers in another direction off the road.
Pamala Browne, 53, and her daughter were driving from Flagstaff, Ariz., to Palm Desert, Calif., when they got stranded when the westbound lanes were shut down, according to AP. “There’s no end to the cars that are stuck out here”.
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