Orange, Riverside Counties Clean Up After Major Storm
COSTA MESA (CBSLA) — Residents and business owners in Orange County are drying out Friday after a major storm dropped four inches of rain on the region, causing major flooding in several areas.
The storm has mostly moved on to the east, leaving behind the remnants of mudslides, flooded homes and businesses, and damaged roads.
Orange County was hit with a strong rain cell late Thursday morning and into the afternoon, prompting a wave of flooding reports. Several intersections and stretches of freeway throughout the county were inundated with deep water, trapping drivers.
Flooding was especially bad in Costa Mesa, where one wall was marked with mud line more than 4 feet high. On Balboa Island, which is already susceptible to flooding, cars were submerged in water to their roofs.
One Costa Mesa business owner said the storm caused $75,000 in damage, and he does not have flood insurance, never anticipating anything like Thursday's storm.
Mandatory evacuations for both Orange and Riverside counties were lifted Friday morning.
In Riverside County, a geyser of mud coated Brookstone Lane in Lake Elsinore and flowed toward homes below the Holy Fire burn area. Residents of 20 homes were forced to shelter in place, but no injuries were reported.
Maria Gonzales's car was involved in a collision after attempted to drive her truck across the mud-slick road.
"There's no signs or lights on the street, anything," she said. "We don't know how the streets are, until I see all the mud, and my truck just slide down to the side and crashed."
Several roads in Lake Elsinore remain closed.