Several Coachella Valley streets remain closed Sunday, Oct. 11 as the region continues to deal with the aftermath of heavy rain brought by the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel.
The system, which was downgraded from a tropical storm to a post-tropical cyclone shortly before moving inland from Baja California to Southern California, dropped more than an inch of rain in several desert communities.
Here are some of the Coachella Valley roadways impacted by the storm.
Palm Springs road closures largely lifted
Most Palm Springs road closures prompted by flooding from the storm have been lifted.
In Palm Springs, North Indian Canyon between Garnet Avenue and Sunrise Parkway closed at about 3 a.m., according to an alert from the Palm Springs Police Department. This closure remains in place as of
3:20 p.m. Sunday.
North Gene Autry between East Via Escuela and Salvia Road and East Vista Chino between Clubhouse View Drive and Carmela Drive were closed but reopened Sunday afternoon, according to Palm Springs Police.
Cathedral City works to clear roadways of mud
Meanwhile, in Cathedral City, "crews worked through the night responding to standing water and debris on city roadways as the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel brought heavy rain and gusty winds to the Coachella Valley," the city said.
Dinah Shore Drive and Varner Road have reopened, and Vista Chino at Horizon Road is now clear, the city said in an update.
The city urged residents to use caution along Tortuga Road and Santoro Drive, where crews are cleaning up mud.
"The roadway at the end of Tortuga and Santoro, near the soccer park, is temporarily closed for mud cleanup, which will continue Monday morning," the city said, adding that the closure should not affect residential or school traffic.
Palm Desert sees flooding, power outages
In Palm Desert, crews are dealing with roadway flooding and traffic signal outages in the wake of the storm, the city said.
Gerald Ford Drive, east of Cook Street, experienced flooding but has since reopened, according to the city.
"But motorists should drive with caution or use an alternate route," the city said.
Power outages are affecting multiple traffic signals throughout Palm Desert including the these intersections along Portola Avenue:
- Quicksilver Drive
- Chaparral Drive
- Hovley Lane West
- Country Club Drive
"The intersection of Washington Street and Hovley Lane East is also affected and is expected to remain on red flash until Monday morning," the city said.
Those intersections affected by the outage should be treated as four-way stops, the city said. Southern California Edison is in the area working to restore power to affected areas.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Storm Rachel's aftermath leaves roads closed in Coachella Valley
