Topanga Canyon To Be Shut Down During Tuesday Evening Rush Hour
TOPANGA (CBSLA) – One of the major arteries through the Santa Monica Mountains will be shut down Tuesday evening for an inspection.
From 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., Topanga Canyon Boulevard, also known as State Route 27, will be closed between the Pacific Coast Highway all the way north to Grand View Drive, a portion stretching about 3 ½ miles.
Caltrans is implementing the closure in order to conduct an inspection of the roadway. Drivers are strongly advised to avoid the area.
In the wake of the Woolsey Fire, Topanga Canyon Boulevard has been forced to close several times due to storms that caused rock and mudslides which eroded the roadway's foundation.
The 97,000-acre Woolsey Fire broke out Nov. 8 south of Simi Valley. It then jumped the south side of the 101 Freeway near Calabasas and spread into Malibu. The fire destroyed more than 1,500 structures and was responsible for three deaths. It was not fully contained until Nov. 21.
Since then, fire-scorched hillsides in Malibu's canyon areas, which have little to no vegetation to slow debris flows or flooding, have been particularly vulnerable to mudslides.