This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jan/09/mudslide-southern-california-deaths-santa-barbara
The article has changed 11 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 9 | Version 10 |
|---|---|
| Southern California mudslide leaves at least 15 dead | Southern California mudslide leaves at least 15 dead |
| (11 days later) | |
| At least 15 people were killed and homes were swept from their foundations on Tuesday as heavy rain sent mud and boulders sliding down hills stripped of vegetation by southern California’s recent wildfires. | At least 15 people were killed and homes were swept from their foundations on Tuesday as heavy rain sent mud and boulders sliding down hills stripped of vegetation by southern California’s recent wildfires. |
| Rescue crews used helicopters to lift people to safety because of blocked roads, and firefighters slogged through waist-high mud to pull a muck-covered 14-year-old girl out of the ruins of a home in Montecito, north-west of Los Angeles, where she had been trapped for hours. She was taken away on a stretcher. | Rescue crews used helicopters to lift people to safety because of blocked roads, and firefighters slogged through waist-high mud to pull a muck-covered 14-year-old girl out of the ruins of a home in Montecito, north-west of Los Angeles, where she had been trapped for hours. She was taken away on a stretcher. |
| Most deaths were believed to have occurred in Montecito, a wealthy enclave of about 9,000 people north-west of Los Angeles that is home to such celebrities as Oprah Winfrey, Rob Lowe and Ellen DeGeneres, said Santa Barbara County spokesman David Villalobos. Winfrey’s home survived the storm and slides. At least 25 people were injured. | Most deaths were believed to have occurred in Montecito, a wealthy enclave of about 9,000 people north-west of Los Angeles that is home to such celebrities as Oprah Winfrey, Rob Lowe and Ellen DeGeneres, said Santa Barbara County spokesman David Villalobos. Winfrey’s home survived the storm and slides. At least 25 people were injured. |
| Those numbers could increase when the search is deepened and expanded, with a major search-and-rescue team arriving from nearby Los Angeles County and help from the coastguard and national guard along with law enforcement. | Those numbers could increase when the search is deepened and expanded, with a major search-and-rescue team arriving from nearby Los Angeles County and help from the coastguard and national guard along with law enforcement. |
| They will focus first on finding survivors. | They will focus first on finding survivors. |
| “Right now our assets are focused on determining if anyone is still alive in any of those structures that have been damaged,” Sheriff Bill Brown of Santa Barbara County said. | “Right now our assets are focused on determining if anyone is still alive in any of those structures that have been damaged,” Sheriff Bill Brown of Santa Barbara County said. |
| The sheriff said “at least several dozen homes that have been either destroyed or severely damaged, and likely many other ones are in areas that are as-yet inaccessible.” | The sheriff said “at least several dozen homes that have been either destroyed or severely damaged, and likely many other ones are in areas that are as-yet inaccessible.” |
| He said it was likely they would find more people in that destruction. | He said it was likely they would find more people in that destruction. |
| The search for the missing, whose numbers are uncertain, continued through the night and then was to intensify after daylight on Wednesday, authorities said. The storm cleared out and was no longer a hindrance. | The search for the missing, whose numbers are uncertain, continued through the night and then was to intensify after daylight on Wednesday, authorities said. The storm cleared out and was no longer a hindrance. |
| A mud-caked 14-year-old girl was among the dozens rescued on the ground Tuesday. She was pulled from a collapsed Montecito home where she had been trapped for hours. | A mud-caked 14-year-old girl was among the dozens rescued on the ground Tuesday. She was pulled from a collapsed Montecito home where she had been trapped for hours. |
| “I thought I was dead for a minute there,” the dazed girl could be heard saying on video posted by KNBC-TV before she was taken away on a stretcher. | “I thought I was dead for a minute there,” the dazed girl could be heard saying on video posted by KNBC-TV before she was taken away on a stretcher. |
| Twenty people were hospitalized and four were described as “severely critical” by Dr Brett Wilson of Santa Barbara cottage hospital. | Twenty people were hospitalized and four were described as “severely critical” by Dr Brett Wilson of Santa Barbara cottage hospital. |
| The mud was unleashed in the dead of night by flash flooding in the steep, fire-scarred Santa Ynez mountains. Burned-over zones are especially susceptible to destructive mudslides because scorched earth doesn’t absorb water well and the land is easily eroded when there are no shrubs. | The mud was unleashed in the dead of night by flash flooding in the steep, fire-scarred Santa Ynez mountains. Burned-over zones are especially susceptible to destructive mudslides because scorched earth doesn’t absorb water well and the land is easily eroded when there are no shrubs. |
| The torrent arrived suddenly and with a sound some likened to a freight train as water carrying rocks and trees washed away cars and trashed homes. | The torrent arrived suddenly and with a sound some likened to a freight train as water carrying rocks and trees washed away cars and trashed homes. |
| Thomas Tighe said he stepped outside his Montecito home in the middle of the night and heard “a deep rumbling, an ominous sound I knew was … boulders moving as the mud was rising”. | Thomas Tighe said he stepped outside his Montecito home in the middle of the night and heard “a deep rumbling, an ominous sound I knew was … boulders moving as the mud was rising”. |
| Two cars were missing from his driveway and he watched two others slowly move sideways down the middle of the street “in a river of mud”. In daylight, Tighe was shocked to see a body pinned by muck against his neighbor’s home. He wasn’t sure who it was. | Two cars were missing from his driveway and he watched two others slowly move sideways down the middle of the street “in a river of mud”. In daylight, Tighe was shocked to see a body pinned by muck against his neighbor’s home. He wasn’t sure who it was. |
| Authorities had been bracing for the possibility of catastrophic flooding because of heavy rain in the forecast for the first time in 10 months. | Authorities had been bracing for the possibility of catastrophic flooding because of heavy rain in the forecast for the first time in 10 months. |
| Evacuations were ordered beneath recently burned areas of Santa Barbara, Ventura and Los Angeles counties. But only an estimated 10 to 15% of people in a mandatory evacuation area of Santa Barbara County heeded the warning. | Evacuations were ordered beneath recently burned areas of Santa Barbara, Ventura and Los Angeles counties. But only an estimated 10 to 15% of people in a mandatory evacuation area of Santa Barbara County heeded the warning. |
| US Highway 101, the link connecting Ventura and Santa Barbara, looked like a muddy river and was expected to be closed for two days. | US Highway 101, the link connecting Ventura and Santa Barbara, looked like a muddy river and was expected to be closed for two days. |
| The worst of the rainfall occurred in a 15-minute span starting at 3.30am. Montecito got more than a half-inch in five minutes, while Carpinteria received nearly an inch in 15 minutes. | The worst of the rainfall occurred in a 15-minute span starting at 3.30am. Montecito got more than a half-inch in five minutes, while Carpinteria received nearly an inch in 15 minutes. |
| “All hell broke loose,” said Peter Hartmann, a dentist and photographer. “Power lines were down, high-voltage power lines, the large aluminum poles to hold those were snapped in half. Water was flowing out of water mains and sheared-off fire hydrants.” | “All hell broke loose,” said Peter Hartmann, a dentist and photographer. “Power lines were down, high-voltage power lines, the large aluminum poles to hold those were snapped in half. Water was flowing out of water mains and sheared-off fire hydrants.” |
| Hartmann watched rescuers revive a toddler pulled unresponsive from the muck. | Hartmann watched rescuers revive a toddler pulled unresponsive from the muck. |
| “It was a freaky moment to see her just covered in mud,” he said. | “It was a freaky moment to see her just covered in mud,” he said. |
| California | California |
| Natural disasters and extreme weather | Natural disasters and extreme weather |
| Los Angeles | Los Angeles |
| (US news) | (US news) |
| Los Angeles | Los Angeles |
| (Weather) | (Weather) |
| US weather | US weather |
| United States | United States |
| news | news |
| Share on Facebook | Share on Facebook |
| Share on Twitter | Share on Twitter |
| Share via Email | Share via Email |
| Share on LinkedIn | Share on LinkedIn |
| Share on Pinterest | Share on Pinterest |
| Share on Google+ | Share on Google+ |
| Share on WhatsApp | Share on WhatsApp |
| Share on Messenger | Share on Messenger |
| Reuse this content | Reuse this content |