High winds cause trees to fall, power outages in Southland
LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A high-wind warning was in effect for parts of Southern California Christmas Eve into Christmas Day.
Many folks woke up to quite a mess. The strong winds took down trees, caused power outages and property damage.
"It was super, super windy and all the patio furniture was flying all over the place," said Chris Tucker, who resides in Rancho Park.
The wind was so strong it toppled a tree damaging part of the Tuckers' home, but it could have been much worse.
"My wife was going out to get the trash cans and the tree fell, and one of the branches hit her on the shoulder, but it was a small branch so she's sore this morning, but she survived it," Tucker said.
Just blocks away, another tree fell. It didn't hit the house but it left quite a mess to clean up.
The San Fernando Valley also took a whipping, blowing over Christmas trees and signs, even destroying vehicles. At least one SUV was smashed when a tree and a power pole came crashing down on Los Angeles Street.
Many power poles were no match for Mother Nature. About 7,200 Los Angeles Department of Water and Power customers across the metro L.A. area, the Westside, Century City, Chinatown and the San Fernando Valley were without power Thursday morning.
As of 1:30 p.m., 1,300 DWP customers were without power, mostly in West L.A. About 50 customers were without power in Westwood due to a fallen tree.
Southern California Edison also reported outages in Rolling Hills and Oxnard.
CHP warns drivers about gusty winds in Inland Empire
The California Highway Patrol is encouraging people to drive safely this holiday season. Signs warned drivers about gusty winds on the 15 Freeway.
In Moreno Valley, tumbleweeds were seen along Madrid Avenue. The tumbleweed crop was used to make a tumbleweed snowman.
A high-wind warning for Ventura and Los Angeles counties expired at 12 p.m. noon Thursday. A wind advisory remains in effect until 3 p.m. Friday for Los Angeles and Ventura counties, San Fernando, Coastal and Santa Clarita valleys.
