Soggy Storm Slogs Through L.A.

The soggy Pacific storm that slogged through Southern California on Thursday snarled commuter traffic on rain-slick streets and contributed to at least two fatal accidents.

A 15-year-old high school student was killed and three other students suffered minor injuries shortly after noon when their van hydroplaned and smashed into a utility pole in Irvine.

The four teenagers were on lunch break when the van, driven by a 17-year-old male student, began hydroplaning, police said. The girl who died was identified as Kristin Godfrey of Irvine.

Later Thursday, a man was killed near Van Nuys Airport when his car skidded out of control on Hayvenhurst Avenue during a rain shower, striking two other vehicles and a tree. The victim was not immediately identified.

By nightfall, more than one-third of an inch of rain had fallen at the Civic Center, and forecasters said scattered showers could continue through this morning.

The storm moved slowly into the Los Angeles Basin shortly before dawn Thursday, just in time to foul up morning traffic. Between 5 a.m. and 9 a.m., there were 179 accidents on Los Angeles County’s freeways, more than twice the usual number for a Thursday morning.

A Metropolitan Transportation Authority bus hit a pickup truck and slid into a building in Woodland Hills, injuring two passengers.

An overturned truck blocked a transition road between the Long Beach and Artesia freeways in north Long Beach, and the northbound lanes of the Long Beach Freeway were stalled in the same area by a two-car crash.

In Ventura County, five cars piled together on the Ventura Freeway near the Camarillo Airport, causing a major traffic jam, and a four-car accident slowed U.S. 101 to a crawl in Ventura.

The rain was still falling during the evening rush hour, and traffic was just as bad.

Snow levels generally were high enough--6,000 feet and above--to leave major mountain passes clear, but heavy rain still caused plenty of trouble, with spin-outs jamming Interstate 5 near Gorman.

Ski resorts in the Tehachapi, San Gabriel and San Bernardino mountains reported up to six inches of fresh snow, with more continuing to fall Thursday night.

Forecasters said the inclement weather should move out to the east by midday today, leaving mostly sunny skies and warmer temperatures for the weekend. They said there is a possibility of more rain by Tuesday.

Times staff writers Allison Cohen in Orange County and Anna Gorman in Ventura County contributed to this story.