Flash Flood — San Bernardino, California

2004-10-20 · near San Bernardino, San Bernardino, California

Event narrative

Heavy rains over the San Bernardino Mountains caused a torrent of mud and water to run down Lytle Creek. More than three feet of mud was deposited on Glen Helen Rd and Lytle Creek. One car was swept away and burried in the mud. No one was in the car at the time. A week later on October 26, the body of a 49 year-old man was found tangled in mud and trees near the Lytle Creek ranger station. It appears likely that this man was swept away in the flood waters from the October 20 storm.

Wider weather episode

The second in a series of October storms brought with it heavy rain, thunderstorms, flash flooding, and funnel clouds. Very heavy rain upwards of 9 inches in the mountains caused serious flash flooding and debris flows in parts of the San Bernardino Mountains. Hundreds of car accidents were reported and several mountain roads were made impassible from mud and rockslides. Roadway flooding was commonplace all across southwest California. The combination of heavy rain and moderate winds caused many trees around the area to come crashing down, causing sporadic power outages. Heavy rain and fog was blamed for a 41 vehicle pileup on Interstate 15 north of HWY 138 at 1237pm. Several funnel clouds were spotted offshore from San Clemente.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5427012. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.