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LOS ANGELES (AP) — An approaching storm had authorities Monday considering another evacua- tion of foothill neighbor- hoods that were slammed with tons of mud and water that damaged dozens of homes. Evacuations likely will be ordered in Los Angeles- area communities at high risk of flooding before a new storm hits Tuesday, Los Angeles County sher- iff's spokeswoman Nicole Nishida said. County emergency offi- cials were meeting to make that decision based on the weather prospects, she said. The National Weather Service said the storm could dump up to an inch of rain on San Gabriel Mountain slopes that were burned in last year's massive wildfire in the Angeles National Forest. Without plants to bind the soil, the slopes can become soaked and col- lapse. ''It's already saturated as it is up there, so we're going to take every precaution that we can,'' Nishida said. The area will see a 40 percent chance of rain on Wednesday and a 20-per- cent chance on Friday, according to the weather service. On Saturday, a storm front stalled over the moun- tains and created an unex- pectedly fierce downpour. A boulder weighing several tons clogged a debris basin, which overflowed and sent a sea of mud roaring through La Canada Flintridge, a foothill com- munity northeast of Los Angeles. Cars were swept away and living rooms filled with mud. Forty-three homes were damaged, and nine were red-tagged as being unin- habitable. More than 500 homes were evacuated, although the order was later lifted. On Monday, a fleet of 300 county dump trucks and other heavy machinery lifted concrete barriers back into position and hauled away tons of mud, tree limbs and boulders from catch basins in a rush to pre- pare them for the next downpour. Some residents shoveled gunk from their homes. ''A lot of the debris basins are near capacity. We haven't had enough time ... to clean them out,'' said Gary H. Boze, a spokesman for the county Department of Public Works. ''We're working around the clock to provide what- ever capacity we can,'' he said. Crews concentrated on removing large debris that could clog drains and cause overflows and on scraping the ooze off roads in high- risk communities so people can flee and rescuers can get in during an emergency, Boze said. The debris was being dumped at a wilderness site in the San Gabriel Moun- tains that already holds tons of debris from previous storms. Around two dozen debris basins in the fire- scarred areas cannot be cleared before the storm hits and some are at full capaci- ty, Boze said. He said all the basins were being moni- tored so residents will have early warning if problems develop. Meanwhile, the mayor of La Canada Flintridge and some homeowners blamed the U.S. Forest Service for the mudslides, accusing the agency of being tardy in responding to last summer's wildfire that eventually burned 250 square miles of forestland above the com- munities. ''The federal govern- ment is not taking responsi- bility for the flow of mud that came from its proper- ty,'' Mayor Laura Olhasso said Sunday. ''They say there's nothing they can do to keep it from flowing, then they need to help clean it up. They need to be responsible property own- ers.'' U.S. Forest Service rep- resentatives did not imme- diately comment on her remarks Monday. Katherine Markgraf's garage collapsed and her car wound up in a neigh- bor's side yard, even though her family had sandbagged and taken other precautions. ''We get flood insurance, we did all the right things,'' she told KCAL-TV. ''Had the forestry service fought the fire the way they were supposed to, we wouldn't be dealing with this.'' However, other residents said they accepted the risk of living in a steep and hilly area. ''You can't blame every- thing on anyone else,'' Jeff Schroeder told KCAL-TV as he paused from shoveling mud out of his driveway. ''You've got to pick your house in the right spot, you know?'' 8A – Daily News – Tuesday, February 9, 2010 FAST RELIABLE SERVICE Junk Cars, Trucks & RV Removal. Large Selection Of Impound Autos For Sale Lockouts - Recovery Long Distance Tows All Insurance Welcome 24 HOUR TOWING Se Habla Expañol A A TOWING FLATBED SERVICE AVAILABLE Lic.#372081 1775 Airport Blvd., #B Red Bluff 529-3595• Corning 824-8869 AND Tyler and Vici Miranda Re/Max Top Properties Tehama Property Management 605 Main Street Red Bluff, CA 96080 office 530.527.1111 Tyler (530)526-2540 Vici (530) 200-0480 Lic. 01316165 Call today for a list of our upcoming foreclosure listings! 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