Mudslide alarm in California: celebrity place evacuated – are Harry and Meghan's children also affected?

Created: 01/10/2023 18:21

By: Richard Strobl

Heavy rains cause flooding in California.

The celebrity town of Montecito is being evacuated.

© IMAGO/Amy Katz / ZUMA Wire

A state of emergency has been declared in California due to persistent rain.

The celebrity town of Montecito, where Harry and Meghan also live, is being evacuated.

Montecito - Prince Harry is currently on every front page thanks to the release of his biography and renewed revelations about the royal family.

But now, of all times, floods and mudslides are threatening Harry and Meghan's new hometown in the USA: Montecito in California.

After days of heavy rain, the residents of the small town are now in acute danger.

The fire department urged residents of the celebrity-loving small town of Montecito in the south of the US state on Monday to evacuate their homes immediately.

According to the authorities, at least twelve people have died in California as a result of the severe storms, and tens of thousands of households are without electricity.

Emergency in Montecito: evacuation to home of Harry and Meghan

"Get out now!" the fire department urged the residents of Montecito.

“This is a rapidly evolving situation.

Please pay close attention to disaster warnings.”

But Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan aren't the only celebrities affected by the warning.

Many celebrities live in the small town, which is a 90-minute drive south of Los Angeles on the US Pacific coast, including talk show legend Oprah Winfrey and actress Jennifer Aniston.

Ex-moderator Ellen DeGeneres published a video of a torrent on Twitter.

"This is crazy," she said.

"This creek next to our house never flows.

It's probably about a meter high now and will continue to rise another half meter.”

In Montecito, 200 millimeters of rain should fall within 24 hours - on hilly terrain that has already softened after weeks of downpours.

The celebrity resort with its picturesque luxury villas is at risk of landslides anyway, as it lies at the foot of a mountain range that was devastated by fires in 2017 and 2018.

Almost five years ago to the day, 23 people were killed by mudslides in Montecito.

Celebrity place Montecito is evacuated: are royal children also affected?

It was initially unclear how many of the city's residents, including actress Gwyneth Paltrow and singer Katy Perry, followed the authorities' call for evacuation.

Spokespersons for Prince Harry and Meghan initially did not respond to requests for comment.

However, Harry and Meghan are said to be currently in New York – for the promotion of the new Prince book.

It is unclear, however, where the two children of the Royals are.

Archie and Lilibet may have stayed in Montecito with a nanny and are now affected by the evacuation.

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The police set up roadblocks at the town entrances.

Several streets were already flooded, but at least one shop was still open on Monday evening.

Severe weather warnings were also issued in many other regions of California.

The US weather service NWS warned of further "heavy rain" in the lowlands and fresh snow in the mountains for Tuesday.

Snow depths of up to 1.80 meters are expected in the Sierra Nevada.

State of emergency in California: Twelve dead after storms

According to Governor Gavin Newsom, twelve people were killed in the storm within ten days.

Newsom had already declared a state of emergency last week, and on Sunday the government of US President Joe Biden also declared a state of emergency for California to enable rapid emergency aid.

As of Monday, nearly 80,000 California homes were without power.

"We assume the worst is yet to come," Newsom told reporters.

Heavy rainfall is actually not uncommon in the California winter.

But California has been suffering from a persistent drought for more than two decades, which experts say is due to climate change and is fueling widespread forest and bush fires.

Where vegetation has been destroyed by fire, heavy rainfall can hardly seep into the ground - which in turn encourages landslides.

Moreover, the precipitation is by no means a real remedy for the drought in California: According to scientists, several years of above-average precipitation would be necessary to bring California's water reserves back to a satisfactory level.

(rjs/afp)