Cold Snarls California Traffic, Threatens Crops


We've got a lot on the line," said Blakely. Both of them combined you're probably looking at over a billion dollars in fruit hanging out there on the trees. —Bob Blakely, California Citrus Mutual, industrial relations director

December 8, 2009
By John Antczak
AP

LOS ANGELES—Miles of backed-up highway traffic began moving over mountains north of Los Angeles on Tuesday as skies cleared after a snowstorm, but lingering cold threatened damage to California citrus crops and forced homeless people into winter shelters.

A 30-mile stretch of Interstate 5 that climbs over 4,100-foot-high Tejon Pass between northern Los Angeles County and the southern San Joaquin Valley was closed Monday evening, forcing truckers and motorists to spend the night in their vehicles or in the tiny town of Castaic.

The California Highway Patrol initially began escorting 500 to 800 vehicles at a time over the pass at about 9:15 a.m. Tuesday, and traffic was flowing freely later in the day.

A range of overnight freeze warnings and watches and frost advisories were posted up and down the state, including for parts of the agricultural Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys due to a cold air mass, the National Weather Service said.

The cold weather hit with only about 10% to 15% of the navel and mandarin orange crops harvested, said Bob Blakely, director of industrial relations for the California Citrus Mutual.

"We've got a lot on the line," said Blakely. "Both of them combined you're probably looking at over a billion dollars in fruit hanging out there on the trees."

Lemons and other varieties of citrus were also at risk.

A survey of growers showed that lows fell to between 27 and 29 Monday night in the groves and not the predicted 23 or 24, and the duration was not sufficient to cause fruit damage, he said.

Blakely estimated growers spent $4 million on frost protection Monday night.

An estimated 17,000 wind machines powered by propane, diesel and electricity were used in the San Joaquin Valley, the mutual said.

Wind machines used in combination with running water in the orchards can raise temperatures several degrees.

Growers were preparing for another potentially freezing night.

"If we don't get some cloud cover it could be a little bit colder than it was last night," Blakely said. "So we're preparing for a very cold night and hoping that it doesn't get that cold."

Even Southern California locations had freezing temperatures early Tuesday, and forecasters warned of even colder weather Tuesday night due to clear skies and little wind in the storm's aftermath.

Ninety-four percent of the 1,642 beds available to homeless people in Los Angeles County under a winter shelter program were used overnight, said Kim Thompson, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. The program went into effect Dec. 1.

"Obviously with yesterday's weather, the word spread very rapidly," Thompson said.

The beds are funded by the city and county through March 15.

"There are people out there that wouldn't make it if we didn't have these kind of programs," she said.

Monday's dawn-to-dusk rainfall had raised fears in Southern California foothill communities that flooding and mud flows could surge out of vast areas burned bare by wildfires, but the cold storm left a dusting of snow across the mountains north and east of Los Angeles instead of unleashing downpours.

Rain was predicted for Southern California again on Thursday with a weaker storm during the weekend.

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