Crews Removing Thick Mud That Trapped 200 Vehicles On Highway 58 Near Mojave

MOJAVE DESERT (CBSLA.com) — Crews were working Friday to clear a 3-mile stretch of Highway 58 that's buried under thick mud, trapping hundreds of vehicles in the Mojave desert.

More than 200 cars and trucks were stuck in mud up to 6 feet high on a stretch of SR 58 between the 14 and 5 Freeways between Mojave and Tehachapi, according to Kern County Sheriff's Department officials.

An estimated 115 passenger vehicles and about 75 tractor trailers were trapped, officials said.

No one was hurt.

The freeway is expected to remain shut down for several days as crews remove those stranded vehicles off the road.

PHOTO GALLERY: Mudflows On Highway 58

Crews were working to get as many cars out of the mud ahead of another storm that was predicted to hit the area again Friday.

A flash-flood watch was in effect until early evening in the Antelope Valley and mountain areas in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.

Meanwhile, Amtrak Thruway bus service between Los Angeles and Bakersfield was suspended for Saturday because of the problems on the 5 and state Route 58, Amtrak announced.

Shelters were open to residents displaced from their homes.