Major Debris Flow Forces Evacuation Of 11 Camarillo Springs Homes

VENTURA COUNTY (CBSLA.com) — Crews remained on the scene of a major debris flow Saturday that evacuated nearly a dozen homes in Camarillo Springs last night.

According to the Ventury County Fire Department, crews originally received a 911 call around 11:30 p.m. Friday from a homeowner reporting minor flooding in his house located in the 6400 block of San Como Lane.

Several minutes later, his wife called back to report that their house was full of mud and she couldn't find her husband, officials explained.

The emergency response call was then reportedly upgraded to a technical rescue.

Once on scene, firefighters used a chainsaw to cut open the front door of the home and dug out a male resident who was trapped up to his waist in mud. He declined medical attention.

Their home was directly in the way of the flow.

KCAL9's Joy Benedict spoke with Capt. Mike Lindbery of the Ventura County Fire Department about the damage on scene.

"That home is about three-feet deep with mud," said Lindbery. "That chair you just pointed at; It blasted by him out into the driveway before the mud closed the door and trapped him in."

According to authorities, heavy rains from Friday evening in the North end of the area caused what was initially reported as a mud flow.

Officials reported about 11 homes were initially evacuated to assess the scene for property damage and safety for residents.

The flow reportedly ran perpendicular to a man-made rain drainage system.

Lindbery explained there is a channel that was built behind the homes that was created to take debris underground. In this case, the drain clogged and the mud came up and over, which impacted the homes in the area.

Geologists that arrived to the scene this morning ruled the cause of the damage to have occurred from a debris flow that was caused by the heavy rain storm.

In May 2013, firefighters tackled a brush fire in the Springs hill located behind homes in this area.

"When fire burns in the hillside like this it can burn very hot," Lindbery said. "It actually glazed the soil and really inhibited the ability of that water to soak in the soil. The bushes and vegetation is what holds all that debris from flowing down the mountain like it did last night.

According to Lindbery, most residents have returned safely to their homes at this point.

Homeowners of the property that was directly impacted, and a second property, have not been cleared to return at this time.

Geologists reported that ground and soil in the area is in tact.

No injuries were reported.