Rain triggers mud, debris flows in Colby Fire burn area
GLENDORA, Calif. (KABC) -- Heavy rainfall triggered some mud and debris to flow down streets in the San Gabriel Valley near the Colby Fire burn area on Friday.
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GLENDORA
Glendora residents started piling more sand bags along their driveways as early as 5:30 a.m. to divert the mud away from their homes.
There were pockets of heavy rain throughout the early afternoon, bringing up to 1 inch of additional rain to the Colby Fire burn area. The rain eventually tapered off significantly late afternoon.
Glendora's four debris basins are still able to handle more rain, with 70 percent capacity available, according to a city news release. Public Works crews are working to clear various storm drains and facilities until 6 p.m.
City officials said field crews focused on clearing roads that were made impassable due to mud and debris flow, including Sierra Madre Avenue between Yucca Ridge and Barranca and at Glendora Avenue and the 800 block of North Rainbow Avenue. These areas have since been cleared and open to traffic.
Glendora Mountain Road at the gate, Glendora Ridge Road and Big Dalton Canyon Road were also closed due to debris.
Glendora has been under a mandatory evacuation order since the city's storm alert level was raised to red Thursday night. That level was reduced to orange by 1:30 p.m. Friday, indicating only voluntary evacuations were in effect. Later in the afternoon, the evacuation orders were lifted, but rain-related parking restrictions remained in effect. By Saturday, the alert level was changed to green, and rain-related parking restrictions were lifted.
In addition to the Colby Fire burn areas, a flash flood warning was issued for regions affected by the Williams, Madison and Tecolote fires, which expired at 10:15 a.m. A flash flood warning was also in effect for Azusa, which expired at 10:30 a.m.
AZUSA
A mandatory evacuation order was issued Friday morning for homes on the east side of Ridge View Drive in Azusa, also near the Colby Fire burn area. That evacuation order was changed to a voluntary basis later in the morning and later completely lifted.
Azusa resident Ed Heinlein's home sits right at the foot of a large hillside, stripped bare by the Colby Fire. When Heinlein went to bed Thursday night, the concrete floor of his basketball court was clean and visible. This morning, he found it buried in mud and rocks.
VIDEO: Azusa home is target zone for heavy mud flow
"When it rained last week, loosened it. So when it comes now, it's 1,000 feet closer, it is ready to go and when it comes, it comes really fast because it's built up so high now," he described.
A report by county engineers determined that K-rails, drainage pipes or stabilization measures would not work to divert debris away from his property.
An evacuation center has been established at the Crowther Teen Center, 241 W. Dawson Ave.
Goddard Middle School, 859 East Sierra Madre Avenue and St. Lucy's Priory High School, 655 W. Sierra Madre Ave were closed on Friday.
The Colby Fire burned nearly 2,000 acres in January, leaving little vegetation to hold water back.
PHOTOS: Heavy rain causes damage across SoCal
