A late summer monsoon that swept over Southern California last week, triggering mudslides and flash floods also destroyed multiple homes and led to a child’s death, officials said.
The storm dumped inches of rain on the San Bernardino County mountains and foothills and unleashed a torrent of mud, rocks and trees, particularly in burn scars near Oak Glen and Forest Falls.
In the end, three homes were destroyed and more than a dozen other homes, businesses and outbuildings were damaged, according to the San Bernardino County Fire Protection District.
Among the homes destroyed was one owned by a couple expecting their fourth baby, according to an online fundraising page. The couple, Amy and Ian Johnson, also lost most of their family pets, Amy Johnson posted on Facebook.
No serious injuries were reported in the mountain communities. But the same storm triggered flash flooding that washed away a vehicle in Barstow, killing 2-year-old Xavier Padilla Aguilera and injuring his father. Family members remembered the child as a happy baby who was always eating and loved watching Ms. Rachel and Morphle, according to an online campaign to raise money for his funeral.
The debris flows also damaged Highway 38, prompting the California Department of Transportation to indefinitely close the road from Angelus Oaks to Big Bear.
More showers are possible Friday and Saturday — and then there’s a chance for new storms as early as Sunday from Tropical Storm Narda, which continues to develop off the coast of southern Mexico, according to the National Weather Service.
Times staff writer Grace Toohey contributed to this report.
