> Global ***-Warming - Frigid Storm Drops Snow in Malibu

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,469164,00.html

Frigid Storm Closes California Freeways, Drops Snow in Malibu
Thursday, December 18, 2008

LOS ANGELES ? Snow snarled major mountain highways and even dusted
Malibu on Wednesday as a cold storm hit parts of California. One
person was killed by a wind-related helicopter crash, and an
overflowing river on the U.S.-Mexico border led to the evacuation of
nearly two dozen people, rescues of about 50 horses and the deaths of
four others.

Styming thousands of commuters and travelers, snow shut Interstate 15
over 4,190-foot Cajon Pass east of Los Angeles and roads through the
San Gabriel Mountains connecting metropolitan Los Angeles to the
commuter suburbs of Palmdale and Lancaster in the high desert to the
north.

Interstate 5, a major trucking and travel route connecting Southern
California with the Central Valley and Northern California, stayed
open over 4,144-foot Tejon Pass most of the day, with on-and-off
Highway Patrol escorts, then finally was shut down in the afternoon as
conditions deteriorated. Massive backups developed below all the
passes.

Calen Weiss, 19, of Tarzana, his brother and two friends wanted to go
snowboarding at Big Bear in the San Bernardino Mountains but instead
got stuck on I-15 in Cajon Pass for an hour as visibility fell to
about 40 yards.

"It looks like Whoville, all snowy, but with less joy and more extreme
misery," he said by phone from the Summit Inn.

Heavy rain also fell in some parts of Southern California through the
day.

Near the California-Mexico border, San Diego firefighters and
lifeguards evacuated 21 people along the overflowing Tijuana River,
said spokesman Maurice Luque. They included 12 to 15 people who were
on high ground outside a home, surrounded by up to 4 feet of water.

Five people were taken out by helicopter, while others were escorted
in Border Patrol all-terrain vehicles, Luque said. Three men were
taken to a hospital for treatment of hypothermia.

About 50 horses also were evacuated, but three others drowned and one
was euthanized after tripping on barbed wire, Luque said.

To the east, several vehicles collided and slid into ditches on
Interstate 8's mountainous grades as heavy snow fell at the San
Diego-Imperial County line. Other vehicles were stuck on the steep
upgrade, their wheels spinning on the snow-packed surface, according
to the California Highway Patrol.

Blowing snow, slush and ice prompted the Antelope Valley Transit
Authority to cancel all its local buses, along with 18 commuter runs
that usually carry some 650 people from the Palmdale-Lancaster area
down to Los Angeles and back home.

The regional Metrolink rail system agreed to carry bus commuters who
had already reached Los Angeles back home, spokesman Francisco Oaxaca
said.

However, trains were ordered to proceed slowly because of the snow.
Two trains also were delayed around 45 minutes at midday because
engineers could not see the red, green and yellow track signals.

It was the first time in his 15 years with Metrolink that snow had
caused such problems, Oaxaca said.

Transit agencies in the East have special equipment to clear tracks
and otherwise handle snow but "we're not equipped for this kind of
weather on a consistent basis in this part of the world," Oaxaca said.

In the Santa Clarita area north of Los Angeles, a wind gust caused a
helicopter to crash, killing an electrical worker on the ground and
leaving the pilot with minor injuries, county fire Inspector Frank
Garrido said.

The helicopter was hired by Southern California Edison to string
electrical lines between power poles in the Bouquet Canyon area.

"It was hovering above the ground. A gust of wind made the helicopter
spiral," Garrido said.

Garrido said the accident report stated that the dead man was an
Edison employee, but utility spokesman Steve Conroy said the victim
was employed by the company operating the helicopter.

Late in the afternoon snow fell in the Malibu area.

"It's a combination of snow and rain, so none of the snow is sticking
on the ground," said Craig Levy, director of a juvenile detention camp
near Mulholland Highway. "It's kind of cool if you think about it.
It's kind of unusual to see snow in Malibu."

More severe cold was on the way, the National Weather Service said.

Freeze warnings were issued for late Wednesday through Thursday
morning for the Sacramento Valley, the northern San Joaquin Valley and
the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta region, among others.

"A freeze warning means subfreezing temperatures are imminent or
highly likely. These conditions will kill crops and other sensitive
vegetation," the NWS said.

Freeze warnings were also issued for north San Francisco Bay area
valleys, and a combination of frost advisories and freeze warnings
were issued for parts of southwestern California.

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