09 January 2023 , 23:02
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Thousands of people have been evacuated from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's California community as a series of deadly storms continued to rage across the state today.
An evacuation order has now been issued for all 15 zones of the Montecito neighbourhood — which is also home to celebs including Oprah Winfrey — as well as surrounding canyons.
The powerful storms pummelling California have killed at least 14 people as flooding and mudslides cause significant damage to the coast and leave frustrated motorists blocked by fallen debris.
Trees have been toppled, tens of thousands are still without power and some schools have been forced to close for the day.
Severe storms have caused flooding and mudslides in California (Nic Coury/AP/REX/Shutterstock)A five-year-old boy was meanwhile left missing after being swept away by floodwaters on the state's central coast on Monday, while two people were fatally struck by falling trees to take the death toll from 12 to 14.
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A seven-hour search for the missing boy turned up only his shoe before officials called it off as water levels became too dangerous for divers, according to local officials.
Felton has been submerged by water (AFP via Getty Images)The Montecito Fire Department told all surrounding residents on Monday to "Leave now" after the location was hit with more than eight inches of rain in just 12 hours.
US talk show host and Montecito resident Ellen Degeneres braved the storm to show her followers the "unprecedented rain" battering the town on Monday evening.
The president has issued an emergency declaration (Getty Images)Wearing just a gray hoodie and thin anorak, she showed the creek next to her home bursting as the water rushed through it.
She blamed the powerful storm on climate change, and urged people to act.
Speaking into the camera, she said: "The creek next to our home never floods, never."
"It's probably about 9 feet up," she added.
"We need to be nicer to Mother Nature, cause Mother Nature's not happy with us."
Ellen DeGeneres said "Mother Nature's not happy with us" as she showed the creek next to her home in Montecito overflowing (Ellen DeGeneres/Twitter)
She said the waters reached around 9ft high (Ellen DeGeneres/Twitter)The National Weather Service had earlier warned of a "relentless parade of atmospheric rivers" — long plumes of moisture stretching out into the Pacific that can drop staggering amounts of rain and snow.
The evacuation of Montecito comes on the fifth anniversary of a horrifying mudslide that killed 23 people and destroyed over 100 homes in the coastal town.
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The heavy rainfall predicted over the next couple of days follows storms last week that flooded streets, battered the coastline and knocked out power to thousands.
Harry and Meghan moved to a million-dollar mansion in Montecito in 2020, after they sensationally quit their duties as working members of the Royal Family.
A man assesses damage to his home in Felton (AFP via Getty Images)They also filmed their recent Netflix documentary series in a $33million mansion less than 10 minutes away from their Montecito home.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown said the decision to evacuate nearly 10,000 people in the community was "based on the continuing high rate of rainfall with no indication that that is going to change before nightfall".
Creeks were overflowing and many roads were flooded, he added.
Evacuation orders were also issued for around 32,000 more residents further up the coast in Santa Cruz County, after the San Lorenzo river that runs through the area was declared to be at flood level, said Melodye Serino, the deputy county administrative officer.
Storms have battered the California coast (AFP via Getty Images)Three major Santa Cruz highways were all blocked by the flood water and mudslides, including Highway 17 — a key but windy route into Santa Cruz from the San Francisco Bay Area.
US TV presenter Ellen DeGeneres is one of many who have taken to social media to share footage of the flash floods in Montecito, describing the area as being "under complete evacuation" and remarking on the anniversary of the fatal mudslides.
The rain-swollen river also surged into the small neighbourhood of Felton on Monday morning and water rescues are underway in the area.
Roads have been submerged in floodwater after heavy rain moved through the area (Getty Images)Despite the bleak situation, residents have remained calm and upbeat.
Christine Patracuola, the owner of Rocky's Cafe for 25 years, handed out free coffee to customers whose homes lacked power Monday. Her staff couldn't come in because of closed roads, including a bridge over the San Lorenzo.
"A little coffee can't hurt anybody," she told Associated Press. "You can't really change Mother Nature; you just have to roll with the punches and hope you don't get swept up into it."
Resident Melissa Foley cleans up as water levels recede in Felton, California (AFP via Getty Images)Nicole Martin, third-generation owner of the Fern River Resort in Felton, said Monday that her clients had been sipping coffee and "enjoying the show" from their cabin porches as picnic tables and other debris floated down the swollen San Lorenzo.
Martin said the river usually sits at 60 feet below the cabins but had now risen to just 12 feet below.
She prepared for the storms by getting about 8,000 pounds of sandbags, readying generators, and handing out lanterns to guests who opted to weather the storm in their cabins.
In Northern California, several districts closed schools.
More rain is expected (Getty Images)On Sunday, 350,000 customers in Sacramento were left without power after 60mph winds toppled trees into power lines, 35,000 of those are still without power today, according to the Sacramento Municipal Utility District.
President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for California to support storm response and relief efforts in more than a dozen counties, including Sacramento, Santa Cruz and Los Angeles.
California Governor Gavin Newsom said that 12 people had died as a result of violent weather during the past 10 days.
Roads have closed (Haven Daley/AP/REX/Shutterstock)He warned that this week's storms could be even more dangerous and urged people to stay home.
The weather service issued a flood watch for a large portion of Northern and Central California.
It predicted another six to 12 inches of rain to hit the already drenched Sacramento-area foothills through Wednesday.
There was also potential for eight inches of rain in foothill areas of Los Angeles late Monday and Tuesday.
Harry and Meghan moved to the Montecito neighborhood of Santa Barbara, California in 2020 (AFP via Getty Images)San Francisco has received more than 10 inches of rain since December 26 and the Eastern Sierra Nevada ski resort Mammoth Mountain saw a whopping 10 feet of snow, the National Weather Service said.
The storms won't be enough to officially end California's drought, but they have helped.
Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles, expected a break in the rain could come after January 18.
"That is my best guess right now, which is good because it will give the rivers in Northern California, and now in Central California, a chance to come down," he said.