California is facing a state of emergency as a parade of severe weather, including heavy rains and strong winds, continues to batter the state. At least one person has died, a child is missing, and tens of thousands of utility customers are still without power.
On Tuesday, a new low-pressure system is set to hit the state, bringing with it the threat of further flooding and landslides. Many areas in California are already struggling with the effects of the ongoing deluge, with homes flooded, streets turned into rivers, and cars swamped by the heavy rains, according to Yahoo.
One person was killed in Avila Beach, located 180 miles north of Los Angeles, when a vehicle was overtaken by floodwaters, according to Anita Konopa, an official with the San Luis Obispo County Office of Emergency Services.
A child is also missing after being swept away when floodwaters swamped a vehicle in the northern section of the county, near Paso Robles, according to Scott Jalbert, another official with the agency. The search for the child was called off Monday afternoon due to extreme conditions, but it is not yet clear when the search will resume.
The number of utility customers without power across California has risen to over 63,000, with at least 13,000 of those in Sacramento County alone, according to PowerOutage.us.
Officials have issued immediate evacuation orders for the entire community of Montecito, which is home to many celebrities, including Prince Harry and Meghan, as well as parts of Santa Barbara and other nearby towns, due to the heightened flood and mudslide hazards. The flooding in Montecito came exactly five years after heavy rains caused a mudslide that killed nearly two dozen people.
The severe weather has also forced the Santa Barbara Airport to close due to flooding, with commercial flights canceled and the terminal closed until further notice. Meanwhile, in Chatsworth, a suburb of Los Angeles, four people were trapped after two cars were swallowed by a sinkhole that compromised an entire road.
California has been dealing with deadly weather for several days, with at least six people dying since the New Year weekend, including a toddler who was killed when a redwood tree fell on a mobile home in the state’s north.
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