At least 2 more inches of rain was forecast across Northern California for yesterday, on top of the 4 to 9 inches that had swamped the region, the National Weather Service said.
Wildfire-damaged areas of Southern California were also under a flash flood watch and a threat of mudslides as heavy rain headed in their direction. In Pasadena, the Rose Parade's floral floats were being prepared for what could be the first rainy Tournament of Roses parade in half a century.
Massive mudslides kept road crews busy moving rock and debris that shut down Interstate 80 through the Sierra Nevada and other roads across the region.
In Guerneville, where the Russian River crested 10 feet above flood stage early yesterday, the downtown was largely spared but low-lying areas and an unknown number of homes flooded, said Linda Eubanks of Sonoma County's Office of Emergency Services.
Officials were urging residents who had left to stay away for another day, and those who hadn't to evacuate. About 50 people were in emergency shelters, Eubanks said.
Maureen Weinstein hosted a New Year's Eve party outside her Guerneville home, as water came within 10 feet.
''We live through [floods] a lot," Weinstein said. ''We're not that concerned this time because this year we have power and the Internet. I can monitor the water." In San Anselmo, 20 miles north of San Francisco, streets were coated with mud and business owners sorted through mounds of damaged goods yesterday, after flood water spread through downtown.
''We got hit very hard. It's all pretty soggy and muddy up here," said Debbie Stutsman, town administrator. ''People are shoveling out."
Stutsman said initial assessments put the damage in town at about $10 million.
Mud and debris also covered the streets of downtown Napa, where officials estimated about 1,000 homes and an unknown number of businesses had flooded, as well as thousands of acres of rural land in the county. The river had crested 5 feet above flood stage in Napa on Saturday and was continuing to drop yesterday.
The storm moved into the Rocky Mountains yesterday as a blizzard, making rescue efforts challenging after an avalanche near Rocky Mountain National Park killed two snowmobilers.
At least one death in California was blamed on the storm, that of a man killed by a falling tree in Vacaville, authorities said.
