BIG SUR – A fierce atmospheric river storm this week washed away a section of Highway 1 along the Big Sur coast, the California Department of Transportation confirmed Thursday night.

In a social media post, Caltrans said the scenic two-lane highway will remain closed to through traffic at mile marker 30, south of Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park, “until further notice.”

Crews and contractors are slated to begin damage assessment, cleanup and repairs at daybreak, Caltrans said.

The danger of debris flows in areas where the landscape was stripped bare by summer wildfires led authorities to close parts of Highway 1 in Big Sur ahead of the storm. As of 4:20 p.m. Thursday, 48-hour rainfall totals included 7.99 inches at the Big Sur remote automatic weather station and a staggering 14.85 inches at Chalk Peak.

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