Updated Dec. 27, 2019 6:23 AM
Record-breaking Christmas night rainfall in the Los Angeles area along with heavy overnight snowfall in the nearby mountains turned early Thursday morning drives into a travel nightmare. In the late-night and early-morning hours, major roadways like Interstate 5 over Tejon Pass was closed in both directions due to multiple stuck vehicles.
Videos surfacing on social media showed dozens of vehicles trapped in the snow on the Grapevine, as several inches of accumulation rendered driving impossible. The California Highway Patrol officially closed I-5 at 10:17 p.m. with no estimate as to when the highway would reopen.
In a photo captured by California Highway Patrol - Fort Tejon-Grapevine, unplowed roads with heavy snow accumulation have forced widespread closures and traffic backups. (Facebook/ CHP - Fort Tejon - Grapevine)
Highway 33 was also closed last night around 10 p.m. “due to blowing snow with near white-out conditions,” according to the California Transit District 7 Twitter account . Caltrans District 7, which covers Los Angeles and Ventura Counties, also reported at 6:22 a.m., local time, that State Route 2 is closed due to weather.
According to AccuWeather Meteorologist Clay Chaney, the heavy snow in mountainous areas may exceeded a foot in some locations.
“A digging trough has entered Southern California and has blasted the area with rain and mountain snow,” Chaney said. “Rain started during the evening hours yesterday and have lasted through the overnight. Mountain snow across the Los Angeles Basin will exceed over a foot on many peaks as the system continues to set up shop over the area.”
A visitor to the Griffith Observatory poses for a photo as storm clouds loom large as they move in over downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2019. Californians are likely to experience winter storms late Christmas Day into the rest of the holiday week, with rain, snow and wind moving across the state. The National Weather Service forecasts that a cold low pressure system Wednesday will move inland and bring heavy rain and gusty winds. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel)
According to Chaney, Los Angeles International Airport saw 1.50 inches of rain from the storm, with more to come. At Long Beach Airport, about 20 miles away, a record-breaking 1.03 inches were recorded.
The National Weather Service (NWS) enacted a winter storm warning for the San Bernardino and Riverside areas through 6 p.m. Friday and through 10 p.m. Thursday for the Los Angeles County mountain areas.
The Cajon Pass, a popularly used mountain pass between San Bernardino Mountains and the San Gabriel Mountains, was also impaired by heavy snow, which forced the closure of I-15.
A tree toppled onto a 60 Freeway transition road to the 605 Freeway just after 4 a.m, according to state officials. Four vehicles may have hit the fallen tree, which caused traffic delays. Elsewhere on the 605, a semi toppled into a ditch, leaking fuel.
While snow clogged roads in the mountains of Southern California, a tornado touched down along the coast of Ventura County. The National Weather Service confirmed that a small EF0 tornado caused limited damage at Ventura Harbor in Ventura, California.
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