Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Body Of 20th Flooding Victim Found Overnight Saturday In Montecito; Search For Missing Continues

Crews work to remove debris off of East Valley Road in Montecito

The death toll continues to rise as searchers continue to look for the missing from last Tuesday's deadly flooding in Santa Barbara County.

Search teams found the body of 30 year old Pinit Sutthithepa overnight Saturday, bringing the total number of confirmed dead to 20.  The number of people considered missing is now at four.

The body of 25 year old Morgan Corey was found during the day Saturday. 

More than 2300 people are now involved in the total operation, with some involved in the ongoing search and rescue efforts, and other focused on clearing debris basins and other waterways so they will be prepared for the next time rain hits the region.

Highway 101 in Montecito remains closed indefinitely due to the ongoing debris removal, and repair efforts underway.  Caltrans officials say they've had crews working around the clock. 

Alternative ways to travel between Ventura and Santa Barbara include trains, boats between the communities, and using Interstate 5 as a workaround.  Starting on Sunday, extra cars and engines were added to expand capacity on the trains by about 2000 people deadly. 

Officials on Saturday lifted evacuation orders for communities east of Montecito. They were lifted for areas south of Highway 192 from Ortega Ridge Road east to the Ventura County line, including Carpinteria and Summerland. Also, evacuation orders were lifted for areas north of Highway 192 from Toro Canyon Road east to the Ventura County line.

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral. 
Related Stories