Roads, beaches flood, while more coastal trail closes in San Clemente with falling debris
Orangethorpe Elementary sixth-graders run through puddles on their way home from school in Fullerton on..Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Officials along Orange County’s coast were carefully monitoring vulnerable sections of their hillsides Monday where tarps already covered several previous landslides.
“We’re just telling everybody to be incredibly cautious,” said State Parks Superintendent Kevin Pearsall. “Get updated before you go to a destination. Just check and make sure you can get there. Keep safety in mind.”
Bolsa Chica State Beach was closed due to flooding and campers at Doheny State Beach were asked to voluntarily evacuate as Monday’s storm slammed the region.
“There’s literally no access to Bolsa,” said Pearsall, noting that Pacific Coast Highway was also flooded and closed.
Some campers at Doheny State Beach set up in RVs opted to stay, while others who wanted to cancel their reservations were given a refund, he said.
Orangethorpe Elementary sixth-graders run through puddles on their way home from school in Fullerton on..Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Workers from Servpro tarp the roof of a house that was suffering a leaky roof in Rossmoor on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. A state of emergency was declared as this Southern California storm is being called xe2x80x9cpotentially catastrophic and life-threateningxe2x80x9d by weather experts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
People cross Harbor Boulevard at Katella avenue in the rain in Anaheim, CA, on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Two cars are trapped under a retaining wall that gave way in the early morning at Las Lomas Gardens apartment complex in La Habra, CA, on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Workers from Servpro tarp the roof of a house that was suffering a leaky roof in Rossmoor on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. A state of emergency was declared as this Southern California storm is being called xe2x80x9cpotentially catastrophic and life-threateningxe2x80x9d by weather experts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Olympic cyclist Amber Neben trains in the rain along Santiago Canyon Road in Silverado, CA on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. Neben is a three-time Olympian – 2008, 2012 and 2020 – and is hoping to secure a spot on the 2024 team to compete in road cycling in Paris. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Ducks swim past partially submerged picnic tables after heavy rains caused a voluntary evacuation of Doheny State Beach Campground in Dana Point on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A beachgoer holds on tight to his umbrella on the pier in Seal Beach on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. A state of emergency was declared as this Southern California storm is being called xe2x80x9cpotentially catastrophic and life-threateningxe2x80x9d by weather experts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Water surrounds a trailer in a near empty Doheny State Beach Campground after heavy rains lead to a voluntary evacuation of Doheny State Beach campground in Dana Point on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Two cars are trapped under a retaining wall that gave way in the early morning at Las Lomas Gardens apartment complex in La Habra, CA, on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Cars drive though the flooded northbound lanes of Pacific Coast Highway between Goldenwest and Seapoint Streets in Huntington Beach on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. A state of emergency was declared as this Southern California storm is being called xe2x80x9cpotentially catastrophic and life-threateningxe2x80x9d by weather experts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A drainage flows behind the Silverado Cafe in Silverado, CA as storms moved through Orange County on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Students head to class at Irvine High School in Irvine, CA on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024 as storms move through the area. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A car plows through a flooded street in Fullerton, creating an interesting design of water on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A soak pigeon is perched on a picnic table at Doheny State Beach in Dana Point on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Orangethorpe Elementary crossing guard Kathy Oxe2x80x99Keefe, braves the rain as she waits for children at the end of the school day in Fullerton on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. She hasnxe2x80x99t seen this much rain in her two years at the job, she said. xe2x80x9cBut the kids love it.xe2x80x9d (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A man takes a photo over the fence on the bridge crossing San Juan Creek near Doheny State Beach campground in Dana Point on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. The campground was put on a voluntary evacuation after a large rain storm hit Southern California. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Part of the road at Doheny State Beach Campground is under water after heavy rains lead to a voluntary evacuation of Doheny State Beach campground in Dana Point on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Two cars are trapped under a retaining wall that gave way in the early morning at Las Lomas Gardens apartment complex in La Habra, CA, on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A near empty Doheny State Beach Campground is partially submerged after heavy rains lead to a voluntary evacuation in Dana Point on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
People wait to cross Katella Avenue at Harbor Boulevard in the rain near at Disneyland in Anaheim, CA, on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Mike Guerrero carries his lightsaber as he walks down Harbor Boulevard after spending a rainy day at Disneyland with his wife, Ileana Guerrero, and son, Ben Guerrero, in Anaheim, CA, on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
State Parks also issued a notice that backcountry closures were in place at Crystal Cove State Parks to mitigate trail erosion.
In San Clemente, there continued to be some visible movement in the soil where a landslide Jan. 24 damaged a section of the Mariposa Bridge along the city’s popular beach trail and cutoff train service south to San Diego because debris was reaching the nearby train tracks. But restoration of a culvert system appears to have been effective, according to an update by Metrolink spokesperson Scott Johnson.
Passenger train service continues to be halted through San Clemente, but freight rail traffic has resumed.
“There are continual visual and electronic measurements taking place of the hillside,” Johnson said of the hillside monitoring that continues.
Officials announced last week a wall will be built to protect the track in that area.
On Monday, officials sent out an alert that two more sections of the city’s popular beach trail were closed because of concerns over recent slope movement and the threat of more rain in the forecast.
A small slide near the El Portal steps happened early Friday prior to the storm, occurring behind the fence already in place to keep people off the trail near the previous landslide area, Councilmember Chris Duncan said.
The other minor landslide happened south of the pier, where rocks came down onto the trail. The city closed the trail from the Boca Del Canon access point to the Lasuen access point.
“It came and spilled on the trail a bit, for safety reasons we shut down that part,” Duncan said. “That hasn’t really happened before. We’re worried that there might be other areas we haven’t had warning about that might come down.”
People should stay off the trail, even after the rain stops, he warned. “Be vigilant about staying off trials until we get some better idea after the rain about where the trouble spots might be.”
On Monday, protective tarping that had been installed on the slope beneath Casa Romantica appeared to be helping and the slope remained in good condition, officials said.
The concern about soil saturation spans along the entire coastal region, including in Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, Dana Point and beyond. And the worry will continue as the rain falls this week, officials said.
“One of our concerns is the duration of rain,” said Brendon Manning, emergency operations coordinator in Laguna Beach. “They’ve forecasted rain for the next three days. When it comes to saturated hillsides, we’re not relaxing.”
Dana Point City Manager Mike Killebrew said Monday morning some mud and debris had come down from the hillsides in Capistrano Beach close to the border of Dana Point and San Clemente.
K-rails along slopes in that stretch of Coast Highway are “containing the slough as they are intended to,” he said, adding there had been no lane closures.
In Laguna Beach, city officials and crews from the police and fire departments watched the town closely Monday morning, paying special attention to areas known to flood, such as Laguna Canyon Road and where South Coast Highway dips at Aliso Beach.
The Laguna Beach Animal Shelter was “proactively evacuated” late Sunday, Manning said.
The flood channel near the animal shelter has caused flooding problems in past years, but work to improve it has been effective, he said. Still, the animals were taken to the Mission Viejo Animal Shelter and to volunteers’ homes.
In Newport Beach, crews were pumping out water from some low-lying areas on the peninsula Monday, but city officials described things as under control.
Later this week, a king tide near 6.5 feet and large surf in the 6- to 8-foot range are expected and official warn could bring more flooding potential to coastal areas, especial with the additional rain water.
