Storm heading to SoCal prompts residents in burn areas to prepare for possible mudslides
SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (KABC) -- A storm heading to Southern California this week is expected to drop heavy rain and several feet of snow, sparking concern from residents in burn areas hit by wildfires.
The wet weather conditions has some preparing by stuffing sandbags to protect their homes from the rain and possible mudslides.
Winds ranging 20 to 30 mph in the Santa Clarita Valley Monday night, combined with drop in a temperature, caused Cynthia Herd to throw on her winter coat.
Herd's home was lucky to escape last month's Tick Fire that ravaged Santa Clarita, but now she says she's nervous about the coming storm, which will bring rain for the holiday week. She plans to put sandbags around her home.
"I can remember a time when we just waited for the holiday to come and it would be fine," Herd said. "Either it'd be sunny or it'd be cold or rainy, but not scary. This is scary."
Mountains surrounding her home are now bare.
AIR7 HD was overhead Monday as crews cleared burned debris from the Tick Fire in advance of this week's storm.
Victor Rodriguez has lived in the area for 29 years and says he's not worried about debris flows because of the way his neighborhood was designed.
"Every year when it rains, there's like a river coming down there and they got a lot of drainage along the road that's down there so we've never had any overflow," Rodriguez said.
Snow is also expected to come to the Grapevine area and the Cajon Pass.
