Crews clean up wash in Palm Springs after weekend rain

Storm clean-up continues in Palm Springs, with crews now hoping to re-open Indian Canyon at the wash sometime Wednesday. Crews have also been working on Vista Chino at the wash.

It’s a lot of heavy equipment around Palm Springs Tuesday morning, cleaning up after a wet weekend that forced roads to close, frustrating drivers.

“It’s a pain. I work in Rancho Mirage or Palm Desert so having to loop back around and find other ways, it’s hard,” Whitney Sanford of Palm Springs, said.

Crews worked throughout the wash area from Indian Canyon to Vista Chino. City officials say the rain required significant cleanup.

“The storms are a benefit to our area in bringing rainfall but they cause problems with the debris and mudflows that close the roads and require cleanup,” Marcus Fuller, assistant city manager for the City of Palm Springs, said.

Some drivers are asking the city whether there are any preventative measures.

“It kind of makes me wonder like if they clean it up is it going to rain again and we’re going to have the same problem?” Tiffany Collins of Palm Springs said.

There could be some relief though. The city says a future Vista Chino bridge is in the early design phase after securing millions in federal funding.

“Barring any unforeseen issues, we should be able to be at a point where we can move forward with construction of that bridge in the next few years,” Fuller said.

For now, it means any sort of rainfall means more heavy machinery cleaning it up with drivers acknowledging the crew’s hard work.

“I feel bad for them. I’m thankful they’re trying to work on it instead of just leaving it,” Sanford said.