Southern California braces for mudslides, homes evacuated

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The first of several strong Pacific storms swept into Southern California on Monday, knocking out power and prompting the evacuation of more than 100 homes due to the risk of major mudslides.

Heavy rains forced the mandatory evacuations in the La Canada-Flintridge area north of Los Angeles, where last year's massive wildfires left hillsides barren and vulnerable to mudslides, the Los Angeles County Fire Department said.

About 44,560 customers in Southern California Edison's service area were without power on Monday afternoon, a company spokesman said.

Less than 1 percent of homes in Los Angeles, or about 10,000 households, were without power, according to the city's Department of Water and Power.

The National Weather Service has a large swath of the Southern California coast -- from San Louis Obispo County in the middle of the state south to Los Angeles County -- under coastal flood watch. It has also issued flash-flood warnings for Los Angeles.

The weather system is expected to include three heavy storms sweeping through the during this week. Some experts said it could be the most powerful to hit California since 2005, when strong rains triggered mudslides that killed 10 people.

(Reporting by Lisa Baertlein; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Bill Trott)