Massive Chunk of California's Highway 1 Near Big Sur Destroyed After Heavy Rainfall
NewsChannel 3-12 Highway 1
A section of California's Highway 1 in Monterey County was swept off to sea after intense rain storms this week.
Photos of the scenic highway show a massive chunk of road along the coastline missing, which has led to road closures in the area.
The missing section, about 20 miles south of Big Sur, is the only known location where the road was washed out, Caltrans spokesperson Jim Shivers told SF Gate.
"Our maintenance team is patrolling the highway now to look for other damage," he said.
California Highway Patrol said that Highway 1 is closed from mile marker 40 to the San Luis Obispo county line, the SF Gate reported Friday.
"Anyone familiar with the history of Highway 1 knows that once we get into the rain season, slides of various degrees, slip outs, rock slides is what we face and what we know will happen," Shivers added.
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In 2017, a section of Highway 1 was closed for more than a year after severe mudslides.
Between Tuesday and Friday, the city of Monterey recorded 3.46 inches of rain, and mudslides in the county have damaged two dozen homes and buildings, SF Gate reported.
