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California mudslides: Evacuation zones expanded as searches ...
www.cnn.com/2018/01/11/us/southern-california-mudslides/?sr=google_news
14 hours ago - (CNN) As teams frantically searched areas of Southern California smothered by rivers of mud and boulders, officials on Thursday increased the size of the evacuation zones. The immediate areas where at least 17 people were killed by Monday's mudslides are under mandatory evacuation, Santa Barbara ...
California mudslides: Search 'for a miracle' enters 3rd day - KCRA.com
www.kcra.com/article/california-mudslides-search-for-a-miracle...3rd.../15067825
The names of victims are starting to be released now. For example, Rebecca Riskin was a good friend of a friend of ours (both Santa Barbara Realtors) . She mentioned when we lent her and her husband our Santa Barbara Family home to stay in a few weeks because she was evacuated that she was worried about her friend Rebecca Riskin and now we found out today her friend is gone.
Rivers of mud wreak havoc in California 01:14
Story highlights
- At least 17 people killed in Santa Barbara County as crews search for missing
- Victim says it only took minutes for first floor to be swamped with mud
(CNN)As
teams frantically searched areas of Southern California smothered by
rivers of mud and boulders, officials on Thursday increased the size of
the evacuation zones.
The immediate areas where at least 17 people were killed are under mandatory evacuation, Santa Barbara Sheriff Bill Brown said.
"We know that this a terribly inconvenient development but it is also incredibly necessary," Brown said to residents.
The
number of people missing in and around the oceanside community of
Montecito was in flux Thursday. At an afternoon news conference Brown
said as many as 43 people could be considered missing.
Authorities
have not confirmed that many people are unaccounted for, he said, but
are looking into reports from phone calls, social media and message
boards.
"It doesn't mean that they (the 43 people) are all actively missing," he said.
Thursday morning the total was reported as 48 then revised to eight due to a "clerical error," according to the sheriff's office.
Brown said he still had hopes people would be found alive as the search moved into its third day.
"We certainly are searching for a miracle right now," he said.
Latest developments
• Victims list: Officials have released the names of the 17 people killed. The victims ranged from 3 years old to 89 years old.
• Deadly storm: All the deaths were reported in Santa Barbara County, authorities said. An additional 28 people were injured in the county.
• Destruction: At
least 65 homes and 462 other residences were damaged in Santa Barbara
County, spokeswoman Susan Klein-Rothschild said Thursday. Eight
commercial buildings were destroyed, and 20 were damaged.
• Search: Crews had completed a primary search of 75% of the debris field.
• Weather conditions: No rain is forecast
for the area over the next seven days. High temperatures are expected
to be in the upper 60s to mid 70s from Thursday through the weekend.
• Road closed: Sections of US 101, a major thoroughfare connecting Northern and Southern California, are closed until Monday.
Race against time
Anxious residents have been awaiting word on their loved ones. On Thursday, Brown said the searches may take weeks.
"This
entire area is a very active rescue and recovery and repair zone right
now," he said in announcing the new mandatory evacuation boundaries.
He
said the zone, which includes areas formerly under voluntary evacuation
advisories, would be in effect for one week, but residents should plan
for two.
Rescue workers are using
helicopters and all-terrain vehicles in a search hampered by blocked
roads and downed trees and power lines.
There were a "number of significant rescues," Brown said.
In Montecito, rescuers have been tearing through mounds of mud, furniture and fallen trees to search for those trapped.
Some received good news of disoriented loved ones rescued from the roof of their muddied, flooded home. But others were not so lucky.
Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Reilly, a search dog with the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, looks for victims in Montecito on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A firefighter clears debris in Los Angeles on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A van is stuck in the mud in the Sun Valley neighborhood of Los Angeles on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A police vehicle drives across a flooded side road in Montecito, near the San Ysidro exit of Highway 101 on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Mud covers a road in Burbank on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Los Angeles firefighters work amid floodwaters and mud on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A member of the Long Beach search and rescue team looks for survivors in a car in Montecito on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Mud washes away personal belongings in the Sun Valley neighborhood of Los Angeles on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Rushing rainwater fills the Los Angeles River near downtown Los Angeles.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
An
aerial view of Montecito, California, shows mudflow and debris on
Wednesday, January 10. Heavy rains unleashed deadly mudslides Tuesday
that damaged or swept away dozens of homes in Southern California.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A damaged home is seen in Montecito on January 10.
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Part of a structure sits in a tree after being knocked off its foundation by a Montecito mudslide on January 10.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Emergency personnel carry a woman from a collapsed house after a mudslide in Montecito on Tuesday, January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Kerry Mann navigates the large boulders and mudflow that destroyed her friend's home in Montecito.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A view of the 101 freeway from Olive Mill Road in Montecito.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Phillip Harnsberger crosses through mud from a flooded creek in Montecito on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Mud fills the interior of a destroyed car in Burbank on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Runoff water from a creek floods Highway 101 in Montecito on January 9. Flooding forced many heavily traveled roads to close.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Reilly, a search dog with the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, looks for victims in Montecito on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A firefighter clears debris in Los Angeles on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A van is stuck in the mud in the Sun Valley neighborhood of Los Angeles on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A police vehicle drives across a flooded side road in Montecito, near the San Ysidro exit of Highway 101 on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Mud covers a road in Burbank on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Los Angeles firefighters work amid floodwaters and mud on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A member of the Long Beach search and rescue team looks for survivors in a car in Montecito on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Mud washes away personal belongings in the Sun Valley neighborhood of Los Angeles on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Rushing rainwater fills the Los Angeles River near downtown Los Angeles.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
An
aerial view of Montecito, California, shows mudflow and debris on
Wednesday, January 10. Heavy rains unleashed deadly mudslides Tuesday
that damaged or swept away dozens of homes in Southern California.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A damaged home is seen in Montecito on January 10.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Part of a structure sits in a tree after being knocked off its foundation by a Montecito mudslide on January 10.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Emergency personnel carry a woman from a collapsed house after a mudslide in Montecito on Tuesday, January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Kerry Mann navigates the large boulders and mudflow that destroyed her friend's home in Montecito.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
A view of the 101 freeway from Olive Mill Road in Montecito.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Phillip Harnsberger crosses through mud from a flooded creek in Montecito on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Mud fills the interior of a destroyed car in Burbank on January 9.
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Photos: Deadly mudslides in Southern California
Runoff water from a creek floods Highway 101 in Montecito on January 9. Flooding forced many heavily traveled roads to close.
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Diane Brewer said her friend, Josie Gower, 69, died after she opened her door and was swept away by the mudslide.
"It was always a full life with Josie. Now, it's just a hole," she said.
Catholic
school founder Roy Rohter, 84, and his wife, Theresa, were swept from
their Montecito home. Rohter died, but his wife was rescued, said
Michael Van Hecke, headmaster of St. Augustine Academy in Ventura, which Rohter founded in 1994.
Rebecca
Riskin, the founding partner of Montecito real estate company Riskin
Partners, also died, the company said. Riskin began selling real estate
in Los Angeles and moved to Montecito nearly three decades ago.
Her loss is "incredibly devastating to her friends, family and our community," the company said Wednesday.
Authorities have not released the names of the missing, but some of their relatives have confirmed their identities.
James
and Alice Mitchell, an elderly couple from Montecito, are among those
missing, their granddaughter, Sarah Weimer, said Wednesday.
Evacuation fatigue
Billy
Grokenberger lived in a part of Montecito that was under a voluntary
evacuation order. He and his parents put belongings in their three cars,
in case they decided to leave before the storm. They didn't.
"We had thought about leaving, but we had just had the fires ... we didn't take it serious(ly) enough," he said.
On
the morning of the storm he woke up to the sound of thunder and went
downstairs. About 30 minutes later, he was watching 2 to 3 feet of water
streaming down the street when he looked over to the sight of the
neighbor's car blasting through a stone wall that surrounded the
property.
"(In) four minutes the water was through our wall and in our house, almost to the second story," he said.
Debris from a mudslide covers a home in Montecito on Wednesday.
His neighbors' house and others were swept away, as were two of the Grokenbergers' cars. Their home cannot be saved.
"The
house is destroyed, but you know, there's just so many others who are
less fortunate. But we just feel lucky that we were able to get out and
(are) alive," he said.
Workers hike to keep senior home running
With
blockages making driving difficult, some are hiking or biking to work
-- including staff at a Montecito retirement home, CNN affiliate KEYT
reported.
With parts of US 101
closed, motorists moving up or down the coast must choose between
time-consuming alternate routes. Some will drive inland to access
Interstate 5.
Others are taking boats between Ventura and Santa Barbara to get around the closure.
Some companies were offering ferries about four times a day, carrying roughly 400 people daily, CNN affiliate KTLA reported.
Prius escapes
Burbank, just north of Los Angeles, also had problems with mudslides.
One resident of the town,
whose escape in a Prius went viral after firefighters posted a video of
it, told KTLA he didn't think he was going to make it.
Desionne
Franklin told the station that his housemate told him about a mandatory
evacuation. So he and he girlfriend dug out the driveway and he eased
down the road at first.
"When I got halfway down the hill, I just felt this burst of water hit the back of the car," he told KTLA.
The Toyota hydroplaned the rest of the way down the hill, he said.
"I guess this is going to be it for me, right here," he said he thought, but the car got traction just in time to avoid a crash.
Geologist: Risk of mudflow remains for years
The storm hit hard between 3 and 6 a.m. Tuesday. The rain poured down on hillsides charred by recent wildfires, which burned vegetation that otherwise could make the terrain more resistant to mudslides.
The Thomas Fire
-- the largest wildfire in California's recorded history -- has burned
more than 281,000 acres in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties since it
began in early December. It's still burning.
Geologists and forecasters warned that intense rain could trigger deadly mudslides from the scorched areas.
And because of the fire, communities below the scarred terrain could remain at risk of mudflow for a few years, said Randall Jibson, a research geologist with the US Geological Survey.
Montecito may be at slightly less risk now, because this week's flooding already brought down vulnerable material.
"(But) no storm brings down everything that is susceptible. There's almost always more" that could come down, he said.
What can be done? Long term, one option would be more basins to slow down storm runoff and collect debris.
Short term, making the public ready to evacuate during heavy rains is key, he said.
Montecito
and Carpinteria are especially vulnerable to mudslides because the
steep terrain in some places goes from thousands of feet above sea level
to sea level in "a matter of just a few miles," said Tom Fayram, a
deputy public works director with Santa Barbara County.
The
rain fell at more than 1.5 inches per hour at one point early Tuesday
in parts of Southern California. About a half inch per hour is enough to
start mudslides, said Robbie Monroe of the National Weather Service in
Oxnard.
Mudslides are not uncommon to the area. In January 2005, a landslide struck La Conchita in Ventura County, killing 10 people.
CORRECTION:
This story has been updated to reflect the latest number of missing in
the mudslides. An earlier report of 48 missing was a "clerical error,"
according to Santa Barbara County officials.
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