Residents left to deal with storm aftermath

Residents Deanna Romp, left, and Evan Say remove debris from Say's front yard on Sand Canyon Road on Saturday as clean-up efforts continue to reopen the roads near Iron Canyon Road in Canyon Country which were closed due to flooding caused by heavy rain on Friday. Dan Watson/The Signal
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Friday’s storm was possibly the most powerful storm that Santa Clarita has seen in the past six years, and it left some damage to be dealt with.

Residents are left to deal with the aftermath of the storm that ranges from trees crashing through apartment windows to driveways and yards being covered with mud. 

Canyon Country Resident Kurt Bryant took a drive to Burbank Friday morning, only to come back to find a tree through his upstairs window.

“I pulled up and the neighbors asked ‘Did you see what happened to your house?’” Bryant said.

“No one is hurt, everyone is safe so it’s all good.”

A downed tree near apartments in Canyon Country. Austin Dave/Signal

More than 30 trees were reported to have fallen in the Santa Clarita Valley on Friday, according to city officials.

While the storm took down dozens of trees, it also left residents with mud to clean up.

“I’m shoveling all the mud and debris that was left here from the flooding,” Larry Kern told The Signal on Saturday as he cleaned up what the storm left behind.

Kern has lived in Sand Canyon for nine years, and explained that the mud slides weren’t a problem before the Sand Fire.

Larry Kern shovels mud from a driveway along Iron Canyon Road in Sand Canyon. Samie Gebers/ Signal

“All of that brush burned and now its just coming down and overwhelming everything,” Kern said.

“But we still love it here.”

Sand Canyon Resident Mike Farwell said that the mudslides weren’t the worse part about living in Sand Canyon.

“One thing that doesn’t get brought up is the ash,” Farwell said. “That’s actually worse than the fire, worse than the floods. Every time the wind blows, the dust is so thick that you can’t leave the house without a mask.”

City of Santa Clarita crews load mud and debris into a dump truck on Saturday as they work to reopen the roads at Sand Canyon Road and Iron Canyon Road in Canyon Country which were closed due to flooding caused by heavy rain on Friday. Dan Watson/The Signal
Two excavators remove mud and debris from the stream bed under the Sand Canyon Road bridge near Iron Canyon Road as crews work to reopen the roads on Saturday in Canyon Country. Roads in the area were closed due to flooding caused by heavy rain on Friday. Dan Watson/The Signal

But Iron Canyon residents haven’t been left in the dust, as officials from the L.A. County Public Works and The City of Santa Clarita are working to clear roads in the area.

“Sand Canyon Road at Iron Canyon Road will be closed for 30 minute increments at a time to clear debris from bridge area,” a road closure alert from the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station read. “The roadwork is anticipated to continue until sunset on Saturday.”

An excavator dredges mud and debris from the stream bed under the Sand Canyon Road bridge near Iron Canyon Road as crews work to reopen the roads on Saturday after flooding due to heavy rain closed the roads on Friday. Dan Watson/The Signal

Other areas in Santa Clarita were left with muddy roads. Placerita Canyon residents west of the 5 Freeway reported flooded streets during the storm.

“It was full of water and debris,” Placerita Canyon Resident Dana Barber said as she loaded her horses onto a trailer to move them back to their home. “Now it’s full of mud.”

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