Community Corner

UPDATE: 405 Reopens After Power Lines Fall Across Lanes

Several wrecks were reported, and some motorists made U-turns to exit the jammed freeway. Nearby surface street signals were also out.

5:50 p.m. Update: All lanes open; SigAlert officially canceled.

5:15 p.m. Update: Northbound No. 4 lane reopens, but exit lane remains closed.

4:30 p.m. Update: Northbound No. 3 lane also now open.

Find out what's happening in Los Alamitos-Seal Beachwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

4:25 p.m. Update: All southbound lanes have reopened. The northbound carpool, No. 1 and No. 2 lanes have reopened.

Original story: A downed power line fell across the 405 Freeway on Thursday afternoon, causing collisions and closing lanes in both directions near Magnolia, the CHP reported.

Find out what's happening in Los Alamitos-Seal Beachwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

No one was seriously hurt, but the downed lines caused car crashes in both directions of the freeway and backed up traffic for miles during rush hour, California Highway Patrol Officer Gabe Montoya told City News Service.

The lines fell across the freeway just after 2:45 p.m., Montoya said. By 3:30 p.m., southbound traffic was backed up to the Garden Grove (22) Freeway and northbound traffic was jammed from the 55 Freeway, Montoya said.

Some motorists turned around and drove in the wrong direction to exit the jammed freeway, according to CHP incident logs.

Meanwhile, Fountain Valley Police said traffic signals were out at the intersections of Brookhurst Street and Heil Avenue, and Warner Avenue and Bushard Avenue. Officers were on scene doing traffic control.

, officials said.

Southern California Edison workers were in the area before the lines went down, but it was unclear how they ended up on the freeway, Montoya said.

Firefighters from Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley and the Orange County Fire Authority were on the scene.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here