Mudslides trap drivers; boy is missing after car is washed away

A late summer storm system that brought heavy rain to parts of the Southland triggered mudslides in San Bernardino and washed away a vehicle in the Inland Empire, triggering a frantic search for a 2-year-old boy.

- BY SUMMER LIN AND RUBEN VIVES

A VEHICLE carried by mud comes to rest outside a Forest Falls home. Two homes have been red-tagged.

The downpour arrived Thursday afternoon and dumped several inches of water across San Bernardino County's mountains and foothills, creating isolated pockets of danger and chaos that first-responders scrambled to reach.

The family of 2-year-old Xavier Padilla said he hasn't been seen since he was riding in a car with his father and the vehicle was swept away. The boy's father managed to escape but the boy is still missing, according to a Barstow Police Department news release.

“We have a bunch of volunteers out here who are still looking,” Xavier’s aunt, Leanna, told KABC.

Xavier’s disappearance occurred amid a late summer monsoon storm system — remnants of Tropical Storm Mario—that brought sweltering heat and unpredictable showers and thunderstorms to the region.

In Forest Falls, Anton Sommer’s cellphone was down to 1% Friday and he said it was unclear when the power would be restored to his neighborhood, one of several mountain communities affected by mudslides.