Part of highway collapses amid heavy rains in California

Interstate 10 was closed indefinitely after a bridge collapsed in heavy rain in the Californian desert.

A 30-foot-by-50-foot part of the eastbound aspect of the 10 was washed away in the storm, and “the bridge is gone”, in response to the California Highway Patrol’s incident log.

One driver had to be rescued Sunday from a pickup that crashed in the collapse and was taken to a hospital with moderate injuries, the Riverside County Fire Department said.

The westbound section of the freeway near Desert Center has also been affected after the water undermined the road surface. This will cause motorists to have to go hundreds of miles out of their way to either Interstate 8 or Interstate 40.

AJ Lester of the Los Angeles County Fire Department’s Lifeguard Division says beaches are open but he’s in touch with weather officials and tracking reports of afternoon rain.

Areas of Southern California saw rare summer thunderstorms this weekend, with rainfall that broke July records all over the state.

‘To have that much rain yesterday and another significant storm today is pretty unusual….

California is now facing one of its most severe droughts on record and Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency in January after four years of water shortages.

There was some good news that came with the rain: It helped crews get wildfires under control.

Pamala Browne and her daughter were on their way to Palm Desert, Arizona, when they were suddenly stranded after the westbound lanes closed. In contrast, moisture from Tropical Storm Dolores is streaming northward from the eastern Pacific into southern California and Arizona with rain and thunderstorms. Sepulveda said her family and many other cars began crossing over into the 50-foot median to head back eastbound, some getting stuck in mud as rain poured down.

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