Drivers rescued as flash floods and mudslides wreak havoc in California

Emergency crews shovelled mud from a section of motorway in California after flash flood debris blocked road, stranded hundreds of vehicles and forced some motorists to take refuge on top of their cars. Excavator trucks scooped and hauled away mud in the darkness on Thursday night with the clean-up expected to continue well into Friday. Four people and two dogs were rescued by fire crews from the roof of their car while others drivers were able to walk away after waiting out the storm on top of theirs. About 15 cars remained wedged in the debris at Fort Tejon on Interstate 5 and needed to be towed out.

The hail was so bad I thought it was going to crack my windshield

Resident Jennifer Stewart

The mudslide happened as storms swept the drought-ridden area causing flash floods. On Interstate 5, up to 5ft of mud covered the northbound lanes. Thousands of cars and trucks were backed up for miles on the inland route that runs the length of California. A second highway was closed on Thursday night following a separate mudslide, while a number of other roads were left impassable from mud and some residents were trapped in their homes. One of the worst-hit areas was Lake Hughes, a mountainside community in northern Los Angeles County. Resident Robert Rocha, 37, said he was driving home from work when the storm arrived. "It was getting pretty hairy out there.“

I’ve never seen it rain that hard in such a short period of time, the hail and wind — it was coming down hard. The debris was just intense — chunks of wood and rock flowing everywhere.

Robert Rocha

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