Wind, icy roads hinder holiday travelers

NEWHALL, Calif. A weekend storm dumped several inches of snow and caused temperatures to plunge. A winter storm warning is expected to be in effect until 9 p.m. Sunday in mountain areas above 5,000 feet in Ventura and Los Angeles counties.

Strong winds blowing through Gorman are expected to die down Monday afternoon.

The snow level dropped down to 4,000 feet. Ice, dense fog and wind gusts up to 40 miles per hour were also a factor.

Grapevine traffic was flowing in both directions, but police were escorting vehicles through the pass early Sunday morning.

"Slow down," said Sgt. Rick Miller of the /*California Highway Patrol*/. "The speed limit is 65, but that doesn't mean you can go 65 when it's pouring rain or snow."

The busy travel day is also expected to clog Los Angeles International Airport.

An estimated 1.5 million people have passed through the airport in just the past four days.

Because of the increased traffic, the airport is encouraging drivers who are picking up passengers to take full advantage of the cellular phone waiting lot instead of circling the terminal area.

Officials say vehicular traffic at the airport will increase by as much as 36 percent.

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