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<\/div>\n<\/div>\nHundreds of rescuers are combing wreckage in Southern California for those missing after mudslides that have killed 17.<\/p>\n
Another 28 injuries have been reported in Santa Barbara County following the deluge that overwhelmed an area scorched by wildfires last month.<\/p>\n
More than 100 homes were destroyed, and another 300 have been damaged.<\/p>\n
One rescue worker tearfully described plucking a \u201cmuddy doll\u201d of a toddler from under several feet of debris.<\/p>\n
Berkeley Johnson said the two-year-old girl was taken to hospital and suffered an injury to her hip.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know how the baby survived,\u201d Mr Berkeley told the Santa Barbara Independent newspaper.<\/p>\n
He said of his own home in the community of Montecito: \u201cThis was an hour of rain, and the house was gone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Johnson said he and his wife, Karen, heard a baby crying after the flooding had subsided and they managed to climb down from the roof of their swamped home.<\/p>\n
The pair joined a fireman to dig the toddler out, scooping mud from her mouth before she was taken to hospital.<\/p>\n
\u201cHad we not gone over there, I don\u2019t think that kid would have [survived],\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Police say 17 people remain missing. The death toll rose on Wednesday afternoon after two more bodies were found.<\/p>\n
More than 50 people have been rescued already but many places were still inaccessible. Several roads were closed, including the major Highway 101 which authorities say will not be reopened until Monday.<\/p>\n
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- In pictures: Mudslides cause chaos<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
\u201cWe are still very much in active search-and-rescue mode,\u201d said Chris Elms, a spokesman for Cal Fire, warning that the death toll may still rise.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a fear. We are still very hopeful that we will locate people alive,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Santa Barbara County spokesman Amber Anderson said: \u201cWe have no idea where they\u2019re at. We think somewhere in the debris field.\u201d<\/p>\n
The upmarket neighbourhood of Montecito is home to celebrities such as actor Rob Lowe, chat show host Ellen DeGeneres and media mogul Oprah Winfrey.<\/p>\n
On Instagram, Ms Winfrey said her property had escaped the worst as she toured the scene, but described the house next door as \u201cdevastated\u201d.<\/p>\n
Some Montecito residents returned to their homes on Wednesday to see what they could salvage from the ruins.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe house being gone, it\u2019s just a house, it\u2019s just some clothes and a house,\u201d Sam Johnson told Reuters.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut in a neighbourhood this small, every name that turns up is someone\u2019s dad, someone\u2019s cousin, someone\u2019s teacher and that\u2019s got to be the worst part of it all, I think. We\u2019re just happy for everyone that makes it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The first rain in months caused mudslides when it hit ground that had been burned by December\u2019s huge wildfires.<\/p>\n
After a wildfire, burned vegetation and charred soil create a water repellent layer which blocks water absorption. Together with the loss of vegetation, this leads to an increased risk of mudslides and floods.<\/p>\n
The Federal Emergency Management Agency says the risk of flooding stays \u201csignificantly higher\u201d for up to five years after a wildfire.<\/p>\n
\u201cRecent burn areas will be especially vulnerable where dangerous mud and debris flows are possible,\u201d said the National Weather Service in a statement.<\/p>\n
Source: BBC<\/p>\n
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