As Winter Storm Hits San Bernardino Mountain Towns, A Look At What Went Wrong Last Year

The San Bernardino mountains are experiencing what's likely to be the biggest storm so far this winter — soon after county officials released a critical report on its response to last year's unprecedented snowfall.

Starting in late February 2023, San Bernardino mountain towns got up to 12 feet of snow over a three week period. Road-clearing was slow and residents were trapped in their homes for days, many without heat.

Thirteen people died, although the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department only attributed one of those deaths directly to the weather.

The county report found the lack of equipment for heavy snow removal hampered efforts to clear the roads quicker. The report also noted poor coordination of the county's emergency response teams and the lack of a formal plan for organizing volunteers and donations.

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Better snow equipment

The county has since beefed up its snow removal capabilities and established plans for on-call contractors to help with snow removal, according to a news release earlier this month.

The county also restructured its Office of Emergency Services. It also launched a website designed to be a hub for disaster information and resources.

Meanwhile, Mountain Area Mutual Aid, one of the community groups that stepped in to provide food and other necessities after the blizzard, was out this past weekend collecting donations and distributing food and warm clothes in Crestline, off Highway 18.

The area is expected to get at least several inches of rain and snow early this week. The National Weather Service issued a flood watch for the San Bernardino mountains and other parts of the Inland Empire and Orange County from Monday morning through the evening.