Mudslides in a Southern California community claimed the lives of at least 15 people on Tuesday after heavy rains sent mud and boulders down hillsides.
Story continues below advertisement
Aided by search dogs, crews from the Montecito Fire Protection District combed through the mud-soaked community, searching for survivors among the debris of flattened homes and mangled vehicles.
Evacuations were ordered in recently burned areas of Santa Barbara, Ventura and Los Angeles counties. But only an estimated 10 to 15 per cent of people in a mandatory evacuation area of Santa Barbara County heeded the warning, authorities said.
The worst of the rainfall occurred in a 15-minute span starting at 3:30 a.m. Montecito received more than 38 millimetres of rain in five minutes. The heavy rain sent mud and debris down hillsides barren of vegetation as a result of the devastating wildfires that ripped through the region last month.
WATCH: U.S. Coast Guard crews airlift stranded residents from homes hit by California mudslides
Rescue crews used helicopters to pluck at least 50 people from rooftops because trees and power lines blocked roads.
Story continues below advertisement
Video shows rescuers helping residents onto roofs before they were helped into rescue baskets and lifted into the helicopter. A family of five, including an infant, and two dogs were among those rescued by a U.S. Coast Guard chopper.
Photos show streets littered with mangled cars, broken power lines and snapped trees while some roads were blocked by massive boulders.
Mangled cars are stuck in Montecito, Calif., after a major storm caused mudslides on Jan. 9, 2018.
Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
A man tries to cross a road in Montecito, Calif., after a major storm hit the area, Jan. 9, 2018.
Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
A man tries to access his house as he climbs through mud in his backyard in Montecito, Calif., after a major storm hit the area on Jan. 9, 2018.
Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
A man rides his bike in Montecito, Calif., after a major storm hit the area on Jan. 9, 2018.
Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
A man walks by devastation in Montecito, Calif., after a major storm caused mudslides on Jan. 9, 2018.
Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
A car sits along a road in Montecito, Calif., after a major storm caused mudslides on Jan. 9, 2018.
Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
A woman walks by devastation in Montecito, Calif., after a major storm caused mudslides on Jan. 9, 2018.
Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Mud runs over a road on Jan .9, 2018, in Burbank, Calif.
Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images
Mud fills the interior of a car destroyed in a rain-driven mudslide in Burbank, Calif., Jan. 9, 2018.
Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images
A member of a search and rescue team looks for survivors in a car in Montecito, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018.
AP Photo/Daniel Dreifuss
In this photo provided by Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Highway 101 at the Olive Mill Road overpass is flooded with runoff water from Montecito Creek on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018.
Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP
A large boulder sits in the middle of Bella Vista Drive in Montecito, Calif., following a rain storm, Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018.
AP Photo/Michael Owen Baker
In this photo provided by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, shows a semi-tractor trailer stuck in mud on U.S. Highway 101, in Montecito, Calif. on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018.
Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP
A women is hoisted out with the help of a San Bernardino County Sheriff’s helicopter on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018.
Stan Lim/Los Angeles Daily News via AP
This photo provided by Santa Barbara County Fire Department, shows a rainbow forming above Montecito, Calif. while law enforcement survey the destruction, Jan. 9, 2018.
Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP
This photo provided by Ventura County Sheriff’s Office shows an aerial view of Montecito, Calif., with mud flow and debris due to heavy rains on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018.
Ventura County Sheriff's Office via AP
A structure is smashed against a tree along Hot Springs Road in Montecito, Calif. after the area was hit by a flash flooding and debris flow on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018.
AP Photo/Daniel Dreifuss
A Carpinteria, Calif., resident carries his bike through mud on Foothill Road, Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018.
AP Photo/Michael Owen Baker
A mangled car along with other debris stack up against a tree along Hot Springs Road in Montecito, Calif., after a major storm hit the area on Tuesday, Jan,. 9, 2018.
Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images