Mudslide evacuees return home in California

LOS ANGELES Feb 10 (Reuters) - Authorities on Wednesday lifted evacuation orders for foothill communities near Los Angeles as skies cleared over Southern California and the imminent danger of more mudslides apparently passed.

No mud flows or floods were reported from rain that fell across the region on Tuesday, the latest in a string of strong Pacific storms to hit typically sunny Southern California this winter.

Ahead of Tuesday's storm, authorities had issued mandatory evacuation orders for 527 homes north of Los Angeles, where walls of mud, rock and debris had damaged or destroyed more than 40 houses over the weekend.

The slides struck in areas left charred and barren of vegetation by last summer's massive Station Fire.

Evacuees began returning home on Wednesday morning, many still faced with the job of clearing out several feet of mud from their homes and properties.

Meanwhile, city crews, keeping a wary eye on saturated hillsides, were working to clear streets and empty catch basins.

The series of storms lashing Southern California has brought a measure of relief to a state that has struggled with three years of drought, dumping several feet of snow on mountain ranges that feed reservoirs.

But state water officials so far have stopped short of calling an official end to the drought.

(Reporting by Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Steve Gorman and Will Dunham)