Snow blanketed the Morongo Basin from Morongo Valley to Twentynine Palms Thursday. Accumulations ranged from a dusting of snow to up to two feet in the higher elevations in Joshua Tree National Park. Some parts of Highway 62 experienced flooding.
Pioneertown Road was closed briefly until it could be plowed, as cars couldn’t make it up the hill.
Chains were required for awhile on Old Woman Springs Road, before the California Highway Patrol temporarily closed the highway between Aberdeen and Johnson Valley due to weather conditions and crashes on the highway. CHP reports said about 100 vehicles were stuck in a traffic jam on Old Woman Springs Road near Valli Hi about 3 p.m. waiting for the road to be cleared.
Joshua Tree National Park closed all roads going in to the park about 3 p.m., and campers who weren’t already set up at their campsite, had to sleep outside the park last night. The park hopes to reopen the roads this morning.
And if you were traveling to or from Las Vegas—good luck, since Interstate 15 was closed repeatedly between Baker and Primm due to snow and multiple crashes.
Several Morongo Basin businesses also closed early due to the weather. While many vehicles became stuck or slid off the road or crashed, there are no reports of serious injuries, although one 61-year-old man slid off the Highway near Sunview Road in Joshua Tree. He was transported by Morongo Basin Ambulance to Hi-Desert Medical Center for treatment. Meanwhile, listeners flooded the Z107.7 Facebook page with photos of snow throughout the Morongo Basin. Today is expected to be drier and warmer, and the snow won’t be here much longer.
