Thunder, Lightening, Flash Floods

Area hikers, motorists battle rainstorms

By Gina Tenorio, Staff Writer

At first, the five women that hiked near Slide Creek in Forest Falls welcomed the rain that dampened the area Sunday afternoon as a relief from the heat.

"It felt good at first,' said Marlene Pirtle, 54, of Hemet. "I thought it was OK.'

Then came the flooding.

"I just want to get dry,' said Kathy Halkin, 51. The Idyllwild resident sat in a meeting room at Forest Falls Community Church with Pirtle, Joyce Wilkins, 54, Joy Agnew, 57, and Karen Johnston, 61, all of Idyllwild.

The women were among a handful of hikers who got caught in a mud and debris flow caused by a summer storm. Soupy, cement-like mud covered 500 feet of Valley of the Falls Road, a few feet away from the church were the women sat and rested.

They were among dozens throughout the county who braved a second day of strange weather. Unstable conditions caused downpours that washed out roads and brought down debris from hillsides.

Storms were reported in Moreno Valley and headed down Interstate 215 into Yucaipa and Rancho Cucamonga, said Steven Vanderburg, a forecaster for the National Weather Service in San Diego. He said 0.79 of an inch of rain was reported on Yucaipa Ridge and 0.32 of an inch fell in Mill Creek.

There will be a 20 percent chance of more showers today throughout the Inland Empire and High Desert areas and through Tuesday for the mountain areas.

No injuries had been reported as of Sunday night, but authorities did step in and save more than a dozen people.......................

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