Strong, Frigid Winds Sweep the Southland : Weather: The Arctic-born system causes a temporary suspension of the oil spill cleanup. Snow and ice prompt the closure of I-5 over the Grapevine.

An Arctic-born weather system routed Southern California’s normally mild winter climate Wednesday, bringing frigid temperatures, gale-force winds that snarled the Orange County oil spill cleanup and enough snow and ice to result in closure of Interstate 5 over the Grapevine.

Stiff winds from the north forced a temporary seven-hour suspension of cleanup efforts on oil-blackened Orange County beaches. Fearing that crews working a 14-mile stretch of sand between Huntington Beach and Newport could be endangered by winds of up to 50 knots, British Petroleum America Inc., owners of the spilled crude, suspended cleanup operations at 10:45 p.m. Tuesday. Work did not resume until 6 a.m. Wednesday.

And even after crews returned to the beach, they were hampered by the stormy weather and lashed by oil-soaked spray. Workers huddled behind hastily erected wind breaks, piled together from absorbent pads they had been using to swab the sand.

The temperature in downtown Los Angeles dipped to a low of 42 degrees at 2 a.m. and struggled into the low-50s by the afternoon, reaching a high of 55. No rain was recorded at the Civic Center.

The high of 50 in Riverside broke by one degree the record for the lowest maximum temperature for the date set in 1938. Highs reached a chilly 46 in Northridge and only 49 in Avalon on Santa Catalina Island.

Gusty winds played havoc with anything not tied, tacked, buttoned or battened down.

On Venice Beach, where wind-whipped sand forced strollers to protect their faces with hoods and handkerchiefs, a monitoring device at the Los Angeles County Lifeguard station registered winds averaging 20 m.p.h., but gusting up to 44 m.p.h.

“I haven’t seen any short pants today,” Chief Lifeguard Howard Lee said.

Whirling winds also posed a threat to Long Beach firefighters, who battled nearly an hour to prevent a house fire in the Los Altos area from spreading to neighboring homes.

Further north, powerful gusts prompted the California Highway Patrol to advise large trucks and “high-profile vehicles” to stay off roads from Newhall to Bakersfield.

CHP cars equipped with chains escorted traffic along a 40-mile stretch of the snow-swept Golden State Freeway (I-5) between Castaic and the northern end of the Grapevine near Frazier Park.

Hazardous sheets of ice and snow kept that section of the freeway, the main link to the San Joaquin Valley, closed between 2:45 and 7 a.m., CHP Lt. Robert Caldwell said.

All lanes of the freeway were not completely opened by Caltrans snowplows until 11 a.m., he said.

The closure caused delays for thousands of motorists, including hundreds of big rig trucks. About 150 trucks became marooned on the freeway when they lost traction on an uphill section near Castaic, Caldwell said. Two trucks jackknifed after sliding on ice and several cars swerved into minor accidents. There were no injuries.

At truck stops in Castaic, coffee and doughnuts were the only items that moved quickly.

“This town is closed down,” said Rodney Waane, lane attendant at the Giant Truck Stop. “There’s about 70 trucks in our lot and 300 more out on the street, backed up on the freeway ramp.”

There were scattered reports of heavy showers, and even hail, in the Los Angeles area Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.

Alan Wilkins, Los Angeles County’s homeless coordinator, said that the Emergency Cold Weather Program was to go into effect at 6 p.m., providing shelter for transients at six locations, including four armories each equipped with 125 cots.

Snow dusted the San Bernardino Mountains and flurries were reported in such low-lying areas of the Inland Empire as Corona.

In Malibu, a stray, low-lying cloud scattered snowflakes for 15 minutes near Paradise Cove.

“All the customers went to the window and watched,” said Debbie Alme, a waitress at the Malibu Sea Lion restaurant. “I wish we had a camera.”

Rainfall was widely scattered and light. San Gabriel recorded .11 of an inch. Monrovia had .10, Riverside measured .07, while .02 fell in San Bernardino.

The storm system, which originated over the Aleutian Islands, was expected to let up overnight as it moved eastward through Arizona and give way to slightly warmer temperatures today.

But National Weather Service freeze warnings were in effect in coastal areas and valleys.

And Ken German, a meteorologist with WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times, cautioned that a similar weather system could sweep into the area by the weekend.

“You may get another shot in about 48 hours,” German said.

Times staff writers Michael Connelly in Los Angeles and Jim Newton in Orange County contributed to this story.