San Francisco, Oakland clean up after flood damage

Residents of a Northern California community were ordered to evacuate ahead of imminent flooding and evacuation warnings were in place elsewhere in rural parts of the region on New Year's Day after a powerful storm brought drenching rain or heavy snowfall to much of the US state, breaching levees, snarling traffic and closing major highways.

Even after the storm moved through, major flooding occurred in agricultural areas about 32 kilometers south of Sacramento, where rivers swelled beyond their banks and inundated dozens of cars along State Route 99.Emergency crews rescued motorists on New Year's Eve into Sunday morning and the highway remained closed.

Residents of the nearby communities of Glanville Tract and Franklin Pond were told to prepare to leave before more roadways are cut off by rising water and evacuation becomes impossible.