On Saturday morning, the coastal city of San Clemente became ground zero in the battle between California and the Trump administration over a planned live-fire exercise over the interstate during a military event at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.
A 17-mile stretch of Interstate 5 was periodically closed through Camp Pendleton. The north side of the closure was just outside the San Clemente city limits.
Mid-morning Saturday, the southbound 5 stopped about a half-mile from the El Camino Real exit, the penultimate exit before closing.
The three previous highway exits – Avenida Palizada, Avenida Pico and Avenida Vista Hermosa – all had flashing signs warning of an imminent closure.
Motorists who were brave or foolish enough to venture beyond Avenida Palizada had to spend at least 30 minutes trying to exit the highway.
Some vehicles on the highway illegally made nearly 90-degree turns onto the southbound highway to bypass the bottleneck exiting the vacant El Camino Real on-ramp for approximately 15 minutes. A California Highway Patrol officer eventually went up the ramp and closed the access.
San Clemente City Council member Mark Enmeier said the highway closure was “completely unexpected” and that he and many residents found out about it Saturday morning when the Orange County Sheriff’s Department announced it on Instagram.
“There was no coordination with local authorities on this,” Enmeier said. Or if there was, he said, “I was not informed of it.”
For Enmeier, the live ammunition event was a “show of force by a few individuals” more than likely intentionally timed for this day of widespread protest. Additionally, he said the highway closure was a source of unnecessary financial stress.
“Not only are we paying as taxpayers for these shows of force, but we are also losing money,” Enmeier said. “I mean, it’s a major thoroughfare, and there’s no other way to get to San Diego from Orange County without taking an hour and a half detour.”
At SC Café in San Clemente, owner Joey Abi-Loutfi said, “I heard about the traffic on the news a day earlier and I wasn’t exactly sure what to think. That’s the trade-off of owning a restaurant right next to a highway ramp.”
Abi-Loutfi said he was not enthusiastic about the highway closures, aside from business being slower than usual due to the government’s show of force by firing guns.
“What a great use of funding,” he said with sarcasm thicker than his restaurant’s heavy salsa.
By mid-afternoon, it appeared motorists had been notified of the closure and conditions around San Clemente had improved.
Highways 91 and 15 – the inland alternatives to the 5 between Los Angeles and San Diego – were blocked.
Gov. Gavin Newsom criticized the White House for failing to coordinate or share security information ahead of the Marine Corps 250th anniversary celebration featuring Vice President J.D. Vance.
California said it closed on the 5th for safety reasons.
“It is not safe for people to drive on a major highway at high speeds directly under AMMUNITION LIVE,” his office wrote on
Administration officials said the Pendleton event was safe and a highway closure was not necessary.
“Gavin Newsom wants people to think this exercise is dangerous,” William Martin, Vance’s communications director, said in a statement.
Newsom’s office said Thursday that he was told no live fire would pass over the highway, only to be informed Friday that organizers of the military event had asked the California Department of Transportation for a sign along I-5 reading “Aerial Fire in Progress.”
Earlier Saturday morning, the state was notified that live ammunition was expected to be fired over the highway around 1:30 p.m., prompting California Highway Patrol officials to recommend closing the highway due to the potential safety risk and the likelihood it would distract drivers.
