We`re explaining news happening around the world, starting with evacuations of thousands of people in southern California. Huge parts of this region had been scorched by wildfires over the past year and a half, and that`s partly responsible for the latest disaster people there are facing.

聚焦世界新闻，我们今天从南加州上万人撤离开始报道。在过去一年半的时间里，森林大火已经将这里的大部分地区变成焦土，而这也是造成最近灾难的部分原因。

Mudslides, heavy rains have been falling in places like Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.

文图拉市和圣巴巴拉县等地，一直在降雨。

And because the fires burned away so much vegetation in the area, there are fewer trees and bushes to help prevent floods. So, mud, tree limbs, and garbage are flowing like rivers, sweeping across busy roads and they’ve wiped several homes off their foundations.

由于火灾烧毁了这一地区的植被，而导致减缓洪水发生的树木和灌木丛的数量减少。所以，泥土、树枝和垃圾像河水一样流动，扫过繁忙的道路。这些流失物将数处房屋连基扫起。

This area is no stranger to mudslides. An official from the National Weather Service says they can be caused by a rainfall rate of a half inch per hour.

该地区经常发生泥石流。国家气象局一位官员表示，泥石流可能是由于每小时半英寸的降雨量造成。

On Tuesday, some parts of southern California got more than three times that in an hour. That`s led authorities to give evacuation warnings or orders to tens of thousands of people.

周二，南加州的部分地区在一小时内降雨量是之前的三倍。当局向成千上万的人发出疏散警告或命令。

One of the alerts from officials in Santa Barbara County said simply, leave debris flow areas now. Go to high ground.

圣芭芭拉县官员发出的警报之一是，立刻撤离流区。前往高地。

A resident named Benjamin Hyatt who sent CNN these pictures said that two to three feet of mud surrounded his house in an instant, like a dam breaking. Officials say at least five people have been killed in these storms, and last night, more rain was expected, worsening fears of flooding.

一位叫本杰明·凯悦的居民向CNN发送了这些照片，他说在自己房子周围有两到三英尺的泥巴，就像大坝决堤一样。相关官员表示，在这场暴雨事件中，至少有5人丧生，而在昨晚，预计还会有更多降雨，这加剧了人们对洪水的恐惧。

We`re explaining news happening around the world, starting with evacuations of thousands of people in southern California. Huge parts of this region had been scorched by wildfires over the past year and a half, and that`s partly responsible for the latest disaster people there are facing.

Mudslides, heavy rains have been falling in places like Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.

And because the fires burned away so much vegetation in the area, there are fewer trees and bushes to help prevent floods. So, mud, tree limbs, and garbage are flowing like rivers, sweeping across busy roads and they`ve wiped several homes off their foundations.

This area is no stranger to mudslides. An official from the National Weather Service says they can be caused by a rainfall rate of a half inch per hour.

On Tuesday, some parts of southern California got more than three times that in an hour. That`s led authorities to give evacuation warnings or orders to tens of thousands of people.

One of the alerts from officials in Santa Barbara County said simply, leave debris flow areas now. Go to high ground.

A resident named Benjamin Hyatt who sent CNN these pictures said that two to three feet of mud surrounded his house in an instant, like a dam breaking. Officials say at least five people have been killed in these storms, and last night, more rain was expected, worsening fears of flooding.