Wet weather takes over Coachella Valley roads, drivers to find alternate routes

Rain. It’s something deeply needed in California but it’s a hazard when we get too much, too fast.

South of Banning, Caltrans had to remove a large boulder on Highway 243 into Idyllwild. It blocked traffic for more than 3 hours and just as that boulder was cleared, crews had to clear another section of the road.

“Usually we have a few things come down but over the last i would say 3 or 4 weeks its just been coming down like crazy. Just a little bit scarier than it used to be,” Jennifer Hunter said.

Caltrans crews stayed on standby in case mother nature took another go with winds and wet weather.

In Menifee in western Riverside County, one deputy saved a 76-year old man and his dog from a car caught in rising water.

In Riverside, a horse got stuck in the mud.

A rescue team saved the horse and say the equine should make a full recovery.

In the valley, there will be road closures in some of the most high traffic areas.

“It’s a hassle because there is a lot of traffic and I have to go home that way,” Xavier said.

Closures in Palm Springs make it difficult to get out to the freeway or to Desert Hot Springs.
One driver says he’s frustrated.

“Just trying to get home as safe as possible and try any way I can to get there faster,” Xavier said.

Here’s a link for current road closure information.