(TWC) – Residents in parts of Orange County, California, are under mandatory and voluntary evacuation orders due to mudslides. The mandatory evacuation applies to Silverado Canyon.
Modjeska and Williams Canyon are under a warning and voluntary order, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department. The orders come after several vehicles were caught up in a mudslide in Silverado Canyon near Irvine Wednesday morning, KCBS-TV reported.
The area was burned by a wildfire that scorched more than 18 square miles in October and November. Burn areas are susceptible to mudslides during periods of rainfall. There were no immediate reports of injuries. Photos showed vehicles stuck in the mud near at least one building.
Orange County Public Works said sections of Silverado Canyon Road were impassible and were expected to stay that way for at least several hours. Hundreds of wildfires that burned thousands of square miles of land in California last year left scorched and barren hillsides vulnerable to mudslides,
an especially dangerous fast-moving type of landslide also called “debris flow.” These flows are typically triggered by short, intense storms and can send a wall of soil, ash, vegetation, rocks, and even cars and homes careening downhill, destroying everything in its path. READ MORE
