KTLA

Pacific Coast Highway Reopens in Ventura County After Monthslong Closure

A section of the Pacific Coast Highway in Ventura County that was closed due to a rock slide is shown in a photo posted to Twitter by Caltrans District 7.

A scenic section of Pacific Coast Highway in Ventura County reopened Friday afternoon after a three-month closure prompted by a rock slide below a denuded wildfire burn area.

The complete 9-mile section from Yerba Buena Road to Las Posas Road was flowing freely again by 2:15 p.m. Friday, Caltrans District 7 announced. Six miles of that stretch had already reopened Feb. 3, but the area that connects Ventura and Los Angeles counties remained closed.

A photo on display by Caltrans at the PCH reopening on Feb. 27, 2015, showed debris that was removed from the roadway. (Credit: KTLA)

PCH was first shut down Nov. 30 after a heavy storm prompted rock slides and mudflows in the area of the 38-square-mile Springs Fire, which burned in May 2013.

The roadway reopened and was then shut down again.

There were 40,000 cubic yards of mud and debris on PCH as a result of the storm, Mark Archuleta of Caltrans District 7 said.

The long closure was needed to ensure safe repairs, some of which were done by workers on rock-climbing ropes.

Work crews rappel down a cliff to remove loose rocks above Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu on Jan. 6, 2015. (Credit: Wally Skaij / Los Angeles Times)

Commuters that use PCH faced a long detour, and Archuleta thanked them for their patience.

“We worked as fast as we could,” Caltrans spokesman Patrick Chandler told the Los Angeles Times.