Authorities raised the death toll as the bad weather continued to roil the state.

"We have at least nine dead in Los Angeles County," said Lieutenant Ed Winter of the Los Angeles County Coroner's Department.

He said there were at least four dead in nearby Ventura county, where a mudslide fell onto the town of La Conchita on Monday burying about 15 homes where many people are still missing.

And one person was reported dead in the state capital of Sacramento, city firefighters said.

The storms have stretched emergency services across the region as they rally to rescue motorists trapped by rising flood waters and search for survivors in La Conchita.