They stocked up on firewood, gasoline for generators, food and water, and even Ice Melt. But nothing could prepare residents of the San Bernardino Mountains in Southern California for the unprecedented wallop that inundated their homes and roads with snow and paralyzed their communities for two weeks.
In the end, much of what followed was beyond their control. Mail delivery stopped, meaning life-saving medications couldn’t reach them. A roof collapsed from the weight of snow at a Crestline supermarket and another was red-tagged in Blue Jay, choking off the local food supply. And imperiled mountain residents were told they would be on their own until first responders could dig out from under 10 feet of snow.
“This has been an unprecedented storm system. Residents in our mountain communities haven’t seen a storm like this in 50 years of living here,” said Mike McClintock, a battalion chief for the San Bernardino County Fire Department. “Ten feet of snow was dumped onto our mountain communities — from Wrightwood all the way east of Big Bear has been significantly impacted.
