On Sunday, Paradise Valley was anything but paradise.
Residents of the La Cañada Flintridge neighborhood had been forced to evacuate Saturday after an early-morning rainstorm unexpectedly pummeled the area and sent mud flowing into their homes.
A day later, cleanup crews appeared along the dirt-soaked Ocean View Boulevard, which was littered with giant rocks, fallen mailboxes and trees. About 30 homes had been damaged in the area.
Department of Public Works employees scooped up mud with shovels and pushed back K-rails that had skated away from sidewalks.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger arrived in the morning and surveyed the critical debris basin that had been clogged by a 10-ton boulder and aided the slurry in filling the cul-de-sacs that dot the hillside.
Schwarzenegger was later introduced to a teary-eyed Karineh Mangassarian on Manistee Drive, who had refused to leave her mud-blanketed home. She pleaded for help and the two hugged.
Building inspectors were expected to arrive later in the day to assess the damage, L.A. County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Nicole Nishida said. She also said evacuations were still in place for the neighborhood.
— Ruben Vives and Corina Knoll
FULL COVERAGE OF THE MUDSLIDES
— Times photo gallery from the scene
— Interactive map of evacuations by The Times’ Rong-Gong Lin II