- About 21,000 people have been evacuated from neighborhoods beneath hillsides laid bare by California’s largest wildfire
- A winter storm is raising fears of flash floods and debris flows
- Residents of Summerland, Carpinteria and Montecito left by midday Monday
- The hillside communities were evacuated last month in the massive Thomas Fire
- The blazes leveled entire neighborhoods, killing 44 people and destroying more than 8,900 homes and other buildings
- Forecasters say several inches of rain could fall overnight on areas scarred by the largest fire the state has seen
Storms brought rare rainfall to California on Monday and increased the risk of mudslides in fire-ravaged communities, driving property owners to stack sandbags over fears that more devastation could occur.
Authorities in an area known as northern wine country ordered evacuations farther south for towns below hillsides burned by the state’s largest-ever wildfire.
Forecasters issued a flash flood watch for parts for Sonoma and Mendocino counties north of San Francisco and warned that heavy rainfall could trigger mudslides in those areas devastated by October wildfires.
The blazes leveled entire neighborhoods, killing 44 people and destroying more than 8,900 homes and other buildings.
FILE – In this Dec. 19, 2017 file photo provided by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Santa Barbara County Firefighters haul dozens of pounds of hose and equipment down steep terrain below E. Camino Cielo to extinguish smoldering hot spots in Santa Barbara, Calif. Evacuations have been ordered for communities below hillsides charred by California’s largest-ever wildfire as the first major winter storm of the season brings rare rain and raises the risk of mudslides. (Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP, File)
A yearslong drought eased in California last spring but hardly any measurable rain has fallen in the state over the past six months.
The extremely dry conditions and high winds last year led to some of the most destructive blazes on both ends of the state.
The storm coming in from the Gulf of Alaska could dump up to 4 inches of rain on Northern California areas still recovering from fires before clearing up by Tuesday evening, National Weather Service meteorologist Steve Anderson said.
‘Everything is soaking into the ground at this time, but if it gets very heavy, it could trigger a flash flood warning,’ Anderson said.
The storm moved in to the San Francisco Bay Area early Monday, snarling traffic during the morning commute and causing several crashes. No major injuries have been reported.
Firefighters have control of what was one of the largest wildfires in California history but mudslides are the way. The fire aftermath is seen above in Ventura on Christmas Day
Officials in the city of Santa Rosa, one of the areas hit hardest by the October wildfires, say crews are standing by in case they are needed.
Robert Lewin, director of Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management, urged residents of Summerland, Carpinteria and Montecito to leave by mid-Monday local time.
The hillside communities were evacuated last month as the massive Thomas Fire raged.
Mr Lewin said flash floods can turn normally dry creeks into destructive rivers of mud and debris that can wash out roads and destroy homes.
The National Weather Service also issued a winter weather advisory for portions of the Sierra Nevada above 7,000 feet, forecasting about 4 to 7 inches of snow and up to 1 to 2 feet on higher peaks Tuesday.
The Thomas Fire, which has burned 280,000 acres and destroyed nearly 1,100 homes, is now landslide territory. The fire is seen above in Santa Barbara on December 13
It says travelers should prepare for difficult travel conditions, including gusty winds, low visibility and slick and snow-covered roads.
In Southern California, residents of the hillside communities of Montecito, Summerland and Carpinteria who evacuated flames and smoke in December were ordered to leave again because rain could wash dirt and debris into neighborhoods.
The wet and windy system moving ashore could soak much of the state and drop several inches in parts of Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, where the Thomas fire has burned for more than a month and left hillsides bare.
About an inch of rain is forecast for downtown Los Angeles, the most in nearly a year.
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