This weekend’s planned closure of I-405 in the Sepulveda Pass, known locally as Carmageddon II, raises particular concerns for emergency crews, who may have difficulty getting to fires, car accidents and other places where people may need help.
The Los Angeles Fire Department is adding staff for the weekend and stationing them throughout West Los Angeles and parts of the San Fernando Valley likely to be impacted by the freeway shutdown.
Many will be using motorcycles to move more quickly from place to place.
Complete Coverage: Your Carmageddon Survival Guide
The department will also station extra teams at five fire stations in areas near the freeway, including those serving Mountain Gate and Encino Hills, Bel-Air and Beverly Glen and West Los Angeles. Extra teams will also be stationed at both ends of the freeway closure.
These crews will have full access to tanker trucks and other equipment that cannot be used via motorcycle.
The 405 will be closed from S.R. 101 to I-10 for 53 hours, starting at 7 p.m. Friday night, as crews demolish the north side of the Mulholland Bridge as part of a project to widen the freeway.
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A similar closure last year went smoothly because people refrained from most trips that required used of the freeway or travel between West Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley.
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