Rain causes fatal accident

Deepa Bharath

NEWPORT-MESA -- Torrential rain and wind gusts Wednesday night and

early Thursday caused a fatal accident in Newport Beach, churned out a

funnel cloud over Newport Harbor, sent several boats adrift from their

moorings and caused minor damage to homes and roads in Costa Mesa.

Monica Lee Haig, 44, of Irvine died of a cardiac arrest shortly after

she lost control of her 1993 Mazda Miata and crashed into a light pole at

MacArthur Boulevard and Ford Road, officials said. It was raining at the

time of the collision, police said.

Haig had to be extracted from the car, which was totaled. She was

taken to Hoag Hospital and declared dead in the emergency room. There was

no one else in the car with Haig, and she was wearing her seat belt at

the time of the collision, police said.

An investigation continues, said Newport Beach Police Sgt. Steve

Shulman.

“There were no skid marks on the street because of the rain,” he said.

That makes it hard to determine what caused Haig to lose control of the

vehicle.

It’s been an “interesting couple of days” for Orange County Sheriff’s

Harbor Patrol deputies, said Harbor Master Capt. Marty Kasules.

A funnel cloud was spotted moving through Newport Harbor 200 feet

above the ground.

“Fortunately it didn’t touch down,” he said. “The threat is gone now.”

Tornadoes aside, six deputies, double the usual number, patrolled the

seas, bringing back more than half a dozen boats that broke away from

their moorings. The most serious damage was caused by a 65-foot sailboat

that rammed into a boat half its size.

“The damage was considerable,” Kasules said.

Wednesday night saw some powerful winds gusting at 40 to 50 miles an

hour, he added, and he expects “more to come.”

Costa Mesa experienced tree travails and pothole troubles after the

lengthy downpour, said Bill Morris, the city’s public service director.

Two large potholes on Newport Boulevard near 18th Street gaped at

commuters Thursday morning. The city reported the potholes to Caltrans,

which is responsible for road repairs in that area, Morris said.

The rain also brought down a large tree on Iowa Street, near Gisler

Avenue, causing damage to a home’s garage. Branches and tree limbs

snapped off elsewhere, but no damage was caused and nobody was hurt in

any of those incidents, Morris said.

The city, anticipating flooding problems, worked Wednesday to ensure

all inlets to storm drains were clear of tree branches and debris, he

added.

Newport Beach officials, who had feared flooding in the coastal areas,

heaved a sigh of relief as they saw tapering showers and partially blue

skies Thursday afternoon.

But that is only a short-term relief, said Frank O’Leary, forecaster

for the National Weather Service in San Diego. The Newport-Mesa area is

expected to receive about an inch of rain between Thursday night and

Friday morning in addition to the 2.26 inches recorded as of Thursday

afternoon, he said.

“Winds will not be as significant as they were” Wednesday night,

O’Leary said.

A coastal flood warning and high tide watches are still in effect for

all Orange County beaches, he said.

Although there was no flooding, the Newport Beach Fire and Marine

Department received a few calls concerning broken tree branches and

leaking roofs, Capt. John Blauer said.

The beach saw one high tide about 9:50 a.m. Thursday. Another high

tide warning is in effect for Newport Beach on Friday morning about 10

a.m.

Until that passes, it is wise to be cautious and prepared, Blauer

said. The department used an additional paramedic unit Wednesday to help

improve response time under tough weather conditions.

Sand bags were stacked at Newport Pier, and 22nd and 24th streets to

prevent water from washing into the parking lots in that area.