Big Sur washout: Traffic sluggish on Highway 1

BIG SUR, Calif. - Emergency crews on Monday were allowing people stuck in Big Sur to leave even as part of Highway 1 washed out over the weekend.

Monterey County residents on the northern half of the closure – north of Rocky Creek Bridge – are hoping to get back home as the road is opening up twice a day to let them pass.

The rains on Saturday caused half of the southbound lane to vanish and cars cannot safely pass through.

At one point, there were about 1,600 people stuck along a 20-mile stretch of highway.

One couple said they were camping over the weekend and got separated from their gear when they drove out for a hike. They weren't allowed to leave Sunday night to head back to Ventura.

"Luckily, we have flexible jobs," Ian Dibruno said. "So we let them know we had a minor emergency situation." 

Highway 1 will open twice a day, at 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., to drive through for an hour at a time. Anyone who works or lives in the area can get through during this window. The convoys will be in alternating directions. 

All state parks in the Big Sur area are closed to day use and camping because of the slides, including Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park, Andrew Molera State Park, Limekiln State Park, Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park and Point Sur State Historic Park. All camping reservations will be canceled, and refunds will be processed, California State Parks announced.

It is not known yet when repairs will begin or  how long they will last.