LOS ANGELES, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- Eight people are still missing in deadly mudslides that have claimed 17 lives so far in Santa Barbara County in the western U.S. state of California, local authorities said Thursday.
"The correct number of missing is down to eight," Mike Eliason, a public information officer for the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, told Xinhua in a phone interview.
The correction came after an early Thursday update that raised the missing to 48 in the mudslides triggered by heavy rains just weeks after major wildfires scorched the area.
"The number of confirmed deaths is 17, and the number of injured confirmed is 28. Four of the 28 injured are in critical condition at a local hospital," Eliason said.
A strong winter storm hammered the region on the U.S. West Coast Monday, bringing heavy downpours and sending mud and massive boulders rolling into residential neighborhoods before dawn on Tuesday.
"Rescue crews have managed to clear the roadways to free the 300 residence that have been trapped since Tuesday in Romero Canyon," Eliason added.
Rescue efforts are fully mobilized, he said, adding that there are now 683 rescue workers, up from 450 on Wednesday, involved in the disaster relief efforts. Enditem
