Boy Dies From Crash on Rain-Slick Road

Coastal areas of Southern California were finally beginning to dry out after the first major storm of the year Monday, but snow was still falling in the mountains, and beaches continued to take a beating from heavy surf.

In Orange County, a 16-year-old boy died Monday of injuries sustained Sunday when the car in which he was riding went out of control during a downpour on the winding Silverado Canyon Road.

The storm forced the closure of several steep dirt roads in the Trabuco Canyon area and caused power outages to about 14,000 households and businesses throughout the county. But while storm drains clogged from debris and fallen leaves, there was no major structural damage reported in the county.

Orange County’s soggiest area was by Anaheim’s Miller Retarding Basin, near the corner of Miller Street and Orangethorpe Avenue, which recorded 2.8 inches of rain, said David King, a supervisor in the county Environmental Management Agency’s public works operations. Santiago Peak took in 2.5 inches; Cypress soaked up 2.32 inches; Huntington Beach logged 1.9 inches, and San Juan Capistrano recorded 1.3 inches. The driest spot in Orange County was Newport Beach, which received .87 of an inch, King said.

It was pouring rain about 3:45 p.m. Sunday when a car being driven westbound on Silverado Canyon Road, east of Black Star Canyon, went out of control and collided head on with an eastbound vehicle, the California Highway Patrol reported.

The passenger in the first vehicle, Anthony Pfaffly, 16, of Silverado Canyon, was taken to Mission Community Hospital in Mission Viejo, where he died at 4:10 a.m. Monday, said CHP spokesman Mike Lundquist. The driver of the car, Jody Hanson, 16, of Huntington Beach sustained major injuries and was taken to Western Medical Center in Santa Ana, he said. The driver of the other vehicle, John Jelderdo, 24, of Santa Ana, and his passenger, Heidi Elder, 24, of Westminster, sustained minor injuries, Lundquist said.

Monday’s early morning lightning and downpour caused power outages of varying durations to about 13,950 Southern California Edison customers in Orange County, spokesman Gene Carter said. Many of them were “momentary” outages, lasting no more than 30 seconds, he said. The lightning caused “lockouts”--longer outages caused by more serious damage--when about a dozen circuits and 10 transformers went out, he said. The worst of the damage occurred in the area of north Orange, Fullerton and Brea, Carter said.

Power was restored within a few hours to most households and businesses, but about 200 customers in north Orange were dark for about 12 hours, until 3:30 p.m., he said.

Travelers advisories remained in effect for west to northwest winds gusting to 45 m.p.h. in the high desert, while the National Weather Service issued small craft advisories for winds to 30 knots and eight- to 13-foot seas in the inner and outer waters from Point Conception to the Mexican border.

Breakers running five to six feet were reported along the coast from Zuma to San Diego, and minor surf damage was reported on a few west-facing beaches.

Meanwhile, the weather service said there was still a slight chance of overnight rain or snow in the mountains.

“It’s been snowing here, off and on, all through the day,” Big Bear resorts spokeswoman Jeanne Haskins said Monday. “You still need chains on your car to go above 4,000 feet.”