Poppy apocalypse! California town forced to shut down a super bloom hillside viewing after being overrun by ‘Disneyland size crowds’ of flower-crazed tourists trying to pose for photos
- Authorities in Lake Elsinore in Southern California closed access to Walker Canyon on Sunday
- The hillside area was inundated with tens of thousands of tourists trying to see a super bloom of poppies
- Super bloom, which was the result of extremely heavy winter rainfall, saw the area covered in orange flowers
- The hashtags #poppyshutdown and #poppyapocalypse began spreading on Twitter when problems arose
- Officials say in addition to traffic problems, people were leaving trails and trampling the flowers
- In the chaos over the weekend, one city employee was hit by a car and a visitor suffered a snake bite
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A small city in Southern California has been forced to close its public viewing of a super bloom of poppies after being overrun by tens of thousands of flower-crazed tourists.
Authorities in the city of Lake Elsinore closed access to Walker Canyon on Sunday after ‘Disneyland size crowds’ flocked to the area and caused huge traffic jams on nearby highways.
The super bloom of wild flowers, which is a result of extremely heavy winter rainfall, has resulted in the hillside being completely covered in bright orange poppies over the last two weeks.
Tens of thousands of tourists have been spotted posing for pictures among the scores of flowers.
Officials in Lake Elsinore in Southern California were forced to close its public viewing of a super bloom of poppies on Sunday after being overrun by tens of thousands of flower-crazed tourists
Tens of thousands of tourists were spotted posing for pictures among the scores of flowers following the super bloom of poppies
The color of the poppies is so vivid it can be seen from mountain tops hundreds of feet above.
A super bloom occurs when warm temperatures follow stretches of winter rain and the explosion of flowers exceeds average spring-time blooms.
The super bloom was originally met with excitement in the community of 66,000, which is about a 90-minutes drive from both Los Angeles and San Diego.
But problems quickly arose this weekend, including traffic and people leaving trails and trampling the flowers.
The hashtags #poppyshutdown and #poppyapocalypse began spreading on Twitter.
The city initially tweeted that roads were jammed, traffic on Interstate 15 had stopped moving and law enforcement assistance was requested from neighboring jurisdictions to deal with the crush.
But the city then shut down access saying the weekend had become unbearable and they were not able to sustain ‘Disneyland size crowds’.
The super bloom, which was the result of extremely heavy winter rainfall, saw the Lake Elsinore hillside completely covered in bright orange poppies. Thousands of tourists flocked to the area to take photos among the blooms
Authorities in the city of Lake Elsinore closed access to Walker Canyon on Sunday after ‘Disneyland size crowds’ flocked to the area and caused huge traffic jams on nearby highways
Residents of the small town experienced difficulty getting to and from their homes at the weekend due to widespread road closures and traffic congestion caused by visitors
The super bloom is the result of extremely heavy winter rainfall that saw the hillside covered in bright orange poppies
The super bloom is an explosion of wild flowers that exceeds normal spring blooms
Tourists have been flocking to the area for several weeks to see the super bloom but authorities were forced to shut off access on Sunday
There was an estimated 50,000 visitors on Saturday alone and people started lining up at 5.30am to catch a glimpse of the flowers.
‘The situation has escalated beyond our available resources. No additional shuttles or visitors will be allowed into Walker Canyon. This weekend has been unbearable Lake Elsinore,’ city officials said on Facebook.
‘We know it has been miserable and has caused unnecessary hardships for our entire community.’
Residents of the small town experienced difficulty getting to and from their homes due to widespread road closures.
Lake Elsinore Mayor Steve Manos said in the chaos over the weekend, one city employee was hit by a car and a visitor suffered a snake bite.
The city had initially put measures in place, including free shuttle buses, to try and ease the congestion.
Officials posted a photo of a flyer on Sunday that read: ‘No more shuttles or Entrance’ and ‘No Viewing or Visiting.’
It also featured hashtags including: ‘#PoppyNightmare’ and ‘#IsItOver.’
Tens of thousands of tourists have been spotted posing for pictures among the scores of flowers over the last month
Official said on Sunday that they had been experiencing issues with people leaving trails and trampling the flowers
Poppy fields are blooming on the slopes of Walker Canyon near Lake Elsinore after heavy rains in California boosted the growth of wild desert flowers
The super bloom was brought about by heavy rains in California that boosted the growth of wild desert flowers
