Andrew Joos-Visconti protects his home from the upcoming rains with sand bags in the Sun Valley area of Los Angeles Tuesday, March 20, 2018. Authorities ordered tens of thousands of people to flee their homes as a powerful storm headed toward California, where many communities on Tuesday face the threat of flooding and destructive debris flows from areas burned bare by huge wildfires. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) - The Latest on a storm that has forced evacuations in California (all times local):
6:45 a.m.
Rain from a powerful Pacific storm is falling across areas of central and southern California at risk of mudslides but there are no reports of problems like significant flooding or debris flows.
The storm was being closely watched Wednesday in Santa Barbara County, where a January storm unleashed debris-laden flash floods that ravaged the community of Montecito, killing 21 people.
County spokeswoman Suzanne Grimmesey says debris catch-basins that filled up in January were completely cleared and have so far been fully functioning in the current storm.
Grimmesey says that forecasters expect rainfall to intensify through Wednesday morning.
Many California communities are at risk of storm runoff damage because of large wildfires that have left barren landscapes.
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11:06 p.m.
A powerful Pacific storm is moving across central and southern parts of California, drenching communities previously ravaged by wildfires and mudslides.
Thousands of residents evacuated their homes ahead of the storm while others were waiting it out and hoping for the best.
Late Tuesday, Los Angeles County authorities told thousands more to be ready to evacuate from neighborhoods in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, which have also been badly hit by wildfires.
Many residents in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties have faced repeated evacuations or advisories since December, when a wind-driven fire grew into the largest in recorded state history and destroyed more than 1,000 buildings.
A January storm unleashed mudslides that inundated hundreds of homes in their community of Montecito and killed 21 people.
This undated family selfie by Kristine Sperling shows herself, from left, daughter Alice, 11, her husband Daniel, 48, and their dog King at their home in Montecito, Calif. The Sperlings evacuated from Montecito on Tuesday, March 20, 2018, ahead of a powerful storm that that is predicted to sweep through California in the next few days. (Kristine Sperling via AP)
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Andrew Joos-Visconti works to protect his back yard from the upcoming rains with a plastic tarp, in the Sun Valley area of Los Angeles Tuesday, March 20, 2018. At right, his daughter, Scarlett, 4. Authorities ordered tens of thousands of people to flee their homes as a powerful storm headed toward California, where many communities on Tuesday face the threat of flooding and destructive debris flows from areas burned bare by huge wildfires. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
The Associated Press
Andrew Joos-Visconti protects his property with sandbags from the upcoming rains in the Sun Valley area of Los Angeles Tuesday, March 20, 2018. Authorities ordered tens of thousands of people to flee their homes as a powerful storm headed toward California, where many communities on Tuesday face the threat of flooding and destructive debris flows from areas burned bare by huge wildfires. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this Jan. 13, 2018, file photo provided by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Capt. John Pepper, Fresno Fire Department, and Rescue Squad Leader RTF-5 searches homes off East Valley Road in Montecito, Calif. Authorities are urging people living in an area devastated by mudslides to evacuate ahead of a strong Pacific storm that forecasters say is likely to bring an extended period of rain and the threat of flooding and debris flows. Santa Barbara County issued a mandatory evacuation order Monday, March 19, 2018, affecting about 30,000 people, including the community of Montecito, where 21 people were killed by a massive mudslide in January. (Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP, File)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this Jan. 10, 2018, file photo provided by Santa Barbara County Fire Department, homes are destroyed along San Ysidro Creek near East Valley Road in Montecito, Calif. Authorities are urging people living in an area devastated by mudslides to evacuate ahead of a strong Pacific storm that forecasters say is likely to bring an extended period of rain and the threat of flooding and debris flows. Santa Barbara County issued a mandatory evacuation order Monday, March 19, 2018, affecting about 30,000 people, including the community of Montecito, where 21 people were killed by a massive mudslide in January. (Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP, File)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this Jan. 10, 2018, file photo provided by Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Kerry Mann navigates the large boulders and mudflow that destroyed the home of her friend in Montecito, Calif. Authorities are urging people living in an area devastated by mudslides to evacuate ahead of a strong Pacific storm that forecasters say is likely to bring an extended period of rain and the threat of flooding and debris flows. Santa Barbara County issued a mandatory evacuation order Monday, March 19, 2018, affecting about 30,000 people, including the community of Montecito, where 21 people were killed by a massive mudslide in January. (Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP, File)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this Jan. 13, 2018, file photo provided by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Santa Barbara County Firefighter Vince Agapito searches through a Montecito, Calif., home that was destroyed by deadly mudflow and debris early Tuesday morning following heavy rainfall. Authorities are urging people living in an area devastated by mudslides to evacuate ahead of a strong Pacific storm that forecasters say is likely to bring an extended period of rain and the threat of flooding and debris flows. Santa Barbara County issued a mandatory evacuation order Monday, March 19, 2018, affecting about 30,000 people, including the community of Montecito, where 21 people were killed by a massive mudslide in January. (Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP, File)
The Associated Press