Forest Falls community concerned about traffic, threats from visitors

FOREST FALLS, Calif. (KABC) -- The mountain community of Forest Falls is considering limiting the number of people who enter their area to check out the snow in an effort to keep threats and traffic nightmares down.

On Tuesday, only residents were allowed to get into the city, which has left streets empty, but that could all change over the weekend.

Residents said that is when visitors descend on the town and take over the community.

"We've had neighbors threatened. We've had people act as if they're going to pull a weapon out of their waistband or pull a weapon out of the seat of the car when (residents) come out and say, 'This is private property you can't park here,'" Suzanne Serdahely said.

A resident submitted video on New Year's weekend that showed tons of traffic creating dangerous gridlock on the only road in and out of the community.

"Just last weekend, we had a 3-year-old boy with traumatic head injuries down at our school. Our firefighters tried to respond to the station. It was such gridlock, they had to abandon their cars and either walk or run to the station so that we could get equipment that at least had lights and sirens," fire station Capt. Tom McIntosh said.

But traffic isn't the only concern for residents. It's also the unsavory behavior of the visitors. Resident Robert Alvarenga said people get drunk in public, defecate and threaten other residents.

Residents are hoping to find a solution that involves law enforcement setting up a two-man operation in which one oversees visitors entering and leaving to limit numbers and another enforces the law.

"We hand them a flier and on that flier is a map of this main road and it shows the two areas that are public land," McIntosh said. "They're simply told, you can play in the snow there. If you park anywhere else, you are violating public property and you will be cited, or towed, or both."

Residents and law enforcement officials were scheduled to meet Tuesday, but the meeting has been postponed to a later date, possibly next month.

Until then, a reserve deputy will be out in the area over the weekend to enforce the laws.