Sea of mud traps drivers inside vehicles on Southern California highway, photos show

As another storm lashed California, flowing mud up to 3 feet deep blocked a state highway and left motorists stranded in their vehicles, authorities reported.

A California Highway Patrol report on Twitter at 6:38 p.m. Monday, Jan. 9, said Highway 126 was closed from Fillmore City to Fairview Canyon by mud flows across all lanes.

CHP officers were working to rescue trapped drivers but had no estimate on when the Southern California highway might reopen.

One photo posted by the CHP shows a semi buried up to its wheels in debris.

“Those were the 126 traffic lanes,” officers wrote. “Now it’s 3 feet deep with mud and rocks.”

An “atmospheric river” has slammed California with a series of intense storms bringing high winds and heavy rain.

The storms have killed at least 14 people, flooded streets, downed trees, forced evacuations and cut power to tens of thousands of people in recent days.

Fillmore is a city of 16,000 people about 45 miles northwest of Los Angeles.

This story was originally published January 10, 2023 at 7:17 AM with the headline "Sea of mud traps drivers inside vehicles on Southern California highway, photos show."