Tropical Storm Hilary: 160+ Crashes Reported In 1 Day In San Diego

SAN DIEGO, CA — Although many San Diegans stayed off the slick roads while Tropical Storm Hilary swept through the region, crashes were still up Sunday in San Diego County, authorities said.

There were 163 reported crashes Sunday as the closely-watched storm brought gusty winds and rain to the region, according to the California Highway Patrol. That number does not include collisions or spinouts that were moved or left prior to the CHP responding to the scene.

Motorists were seriously injured in three of the collisions, CHP spokesman Jake Sanchez told Patch. There were no fatalities.

"This is on a day where traffic was sparse after requests were made to limit driving," Sanchez said.

On Saturday, before the storm made landfall in San Diego, there were only 39 crashes, Sanchez said.

"I believe we did see a lot of San Diegans stay off our roadway (on Sunday)," he added. "Traffic was considerably lighter, but unfortunately, we still had 163 collisions."

Roughly 70 of those crashes occurred in the CHP Oceanside Area office's jurisdiction.

CHP officer Hunter Gerber told Patch that the North County office responded to 72 crashes between Sunday and 8 a.m. Monday. There were no major injuries.

The Oceanside Area office has responded to less than 15 crashes between Sunday to 8 a.m. Monday, on average, for the last month, Gerber said.

"We saw less traffic on our highways and roadways in the North San Diego County area, which includes Interstate 5, Interstate 15, state Route 78 and state Route 76," Gerber said. "Overall, the heavy rainfall led to an increase in the number of crashes that occurred, many of which were solo vehicle spinouts."