Los Angeles officials anticipating “Carmageddon,” the 53-hour closure of a stretch of Interstate 405, issued a YouTube video of actor Erik Estrada cautioning drivers about the event and requested celebrities tweet warnings.

The major north-south freeway on the city’s westside will begin closing at 7 p.m. July 16 between I-10 and U.S. 101. It’s scheduled to reopen 6 a.m. July 18. Drivers in the metropolitan area are advised to use alternative routes, including 5, 15, 23, 55, 57, 101, 118, 126, 210, 605 and 710 freeways.

On Jun 30, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation agency released a public service announcement featuring Estrada repeating the mantra officials sanctioned for the event: “Plan ahead, avoid the area or stay home.”  The actor portrayed a state highway patrol officer in the television series “CHiPs,” which ended a six-year run in 1983.

Television personality and model Kim Kardashian tweeted a July 6 warning about the upcoming closure.

An area television station has partnered with the traffic app company Waze to offer its free community-based traffic and navigation app for smartphones. Those lacking smartphones can follow @BeatCarmageddon on Twitter.

Sirius XM Radio will offer “Carmageddon Radio,” during that weekend, with news and traffic reports to help drivers in the area.