A famous California highway remained closed on Monday after a portion of the road collapsed, leaving nearly 2,000 travelers stranded during Easter weekend.
A section of California’s Highway 1 – which winds along the state’s cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean – crumbled during a major storm on Saturday, the Associated Press reported.
The damaged road in Monterey county, near the Big Sur area of northern California, stranded nearly 1,600 drivers overnight along the highway, until emergency crews could guide them along the damaged roadway the next morning.
Some stranded motorists were forced to sleep in their cars, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Others had to stay in local hotels being used as emergency shelters.
On Sunday, crews with the California department of transportation helped escort drivers around the collapsed stretch of road in the northbound lane.
About 300 cars were waiting to be escorted out in convoys, the Chronicle reported.
California transportation department officials said on X that the roadway would be closed into Monday due to the road slip-out.
“Convoys will lead essential travelers through closure area daily at 8am and 4pm. Engineers on site to observe conditions. Crews working to stabilize edge of roadway,” authorities said.
The California governor, Gavin Newsom, said on Sunday that his office was coordinating with several state agencies to address the slip-out, according to a statement on X.
All state parks in the Big Sur area are also closed “until further notice” because of the roadway collapse, the California department of parks and recreation said in a statement.
Highway 1 has previously been closed due to damage caused by inclement weather. A 12.1-mile portion of the highway has been closed since January 2023 due to rockslides, SF Gate reported. Officials have vowed to fully reopen the picturesque highway by spring 2024, though this latest road closure may complicate previous timelines.
Saturday’s storm that damaged Highway 1 comes amid severe weather in other western parts of the US. Swaths of the midwest area, including Missouri and Illinois, may experience severe thunderstorms.
Forecasters have also warned that tornadoes could form in some areas, in addition to expected hail and intense winds, as the three-month period that is typically the most active for twisters in the US kicked off on Monday.
