by wildcherry on Saturday, February 6th, 2010 | Travel, Weather | No Comments

At least 41 homes were seriously damaged and 500 more were ordered evacuated after heavy rains that pours over southern california overflowed debris basins, carried away cement barricades and swept cars into storm drains.

“We’ve got crews going door to door to tell residents to get out,” said Los Angeles County Fire Insp. Frederick Stowers. “Some of the roads up there are a complete mess.”

At least a foot of debris was reported in some houses. Family photographs, furniture and other personal items were spotted among the rocks and debris that flowed into yards and streets.

By midmorning, the rain had tapered off, but forecasters said another storm system was expected Saturday afternoon.

The evacuations were ordered in foothill areas of La Canada Flintridge, La Crescenta and some parts of Acton.

An evacuation center was set up at La Canada Flintridge, and the Red Cross was working to establish other locations to shelter displaced residents.

Crews used bulldozers and other heavy equipment to clear masses of mud and rocks that blocked suburban streets and intersections.

No injuries were reported as a result of the mudslides.

A heavy downpour at sunrise followed a steady overnight rain of nearly 2 inches in a mountainous 250-square-mile scarred by wildfires last summer. The National Weather Service warned of floods likely in foothill areas of Santa Anita, Sierra Madre, Arcadia and Monrovia.

Widespread flooding and downed trees tied up traffic and caused accidents across Los Angeles County.

A section of the Long Beach Freeway was shut down early Saturday because of high water.

Water almost a foot deep flowed into businesses on Melrose Avenue. To the east, Topanga Canyon Boulevard was closed by a rock slide just north of Pacific Coast Highway, and scattered rocks and mud fell on roads in Malibu.

Scattered power outages affected more than 10,000 customers in the Los Angeles area.

Tags: california, California Mudslides, California Rain, Extreme Weather, la canada evacuation, la canada flintridge mud slide, la canada mud slide, Mudslides