LOS ANGELES (AP) - The Latest on California Storms (all times local):
8 p.m.
The California Highway Patrol has reopened a section of Interstate 5 north of Los Angeles that was closed for hours by snow as a Pacific storm roared through the area.
Dozens of cars were stranded Monday because of ice and blowing snow in the Grapevine, a high pass on one of the major routes between Los Angeles and San Francisco.
As evening fell, CHP cars began escorting the trapped vehicles out and after nightfall reopened both sides of the north-south route.
Rain fell in other areas of Southern California and another storm is expected Tuesday, and fear of possible mudslides has prompted evacuation orders for some wildfire burn areas.
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5:30 p.m.
Authorities have reopened a 4.5-mile (7-kilometer) section of Pacific Coast Highway just north of Malibu that was closed by a mud flow.
Monday’s mess was caused by the first in a series of Pacific storms moving across Southern California. The storm also brought snow that shut down Interstate 5 north of Los Angeles. The major route connects LA with San Francisco. There’s no word when it will reopen but the Highway Patrol is escorting dozens of trapped cars off the road.
There’s concern that heavy rain will cause dangerous mudslides in areas denuded by wildfires. A mandatory evacuation was ordered in Riverside County for a dozen areas around the area the August Holy Fire.
In Santa Barbara County, officials have announced evacuation orders for the Thomas, Sherpa and Whittier fire burn areas beginning Tuesday morning, when the rain resumes.
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2:20 p.m.
A Pacific storm moving across Southern California has triggered a mudslide that has closed a 4.5-mile (7-kilometer) section of Pacific Coast Highway just north of Malibu.
The state Department of Transportation is advising drivers to use alternate routes. There was no estimate on when the highway will reopen was given.
High wind and snow also snarled traffic north of Los Angeles on Interstate 5, a major route connecting Los Angeles with San Francisco.
Drivers reported slow going and were advised to take other routes.
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10:16 a.m.
The first in a series of Pacific storms is moving across Southern California, where downpours could unleash mud and debris flows from large wildfire burn scars.
A flood advisory is in effect Monday morning for western Los Angeles County and neighboring Ventura County, and the National Weather Service issued a flood advisory for a wide area including parts of San Diego, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
In Riverside County, a mandatory evacuation has been ordered for a dozen areas around the burn scar of the Holy Fire, which erupted last August in Holy Jim Canyon.
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