Cal Fire search and rescue crews used their hands to get free as they trudged through the mud, looking for survivors.
Most people who have evacuated are being told to stay away from their homes for at least two weeks, the Associated Press reported.
But time is running out, as authorities plead for the public's help locating seven people who are still missing.
The 18 victims ranged in age from 3 years old to 89, according to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's office.
Rescue efforts continue this weekend, but officials say finding anyone alive now would be a "miracle."
Source: Reuters
More than 100 homes were destroyed, and hundreds more damaged, as mud and water raced down the hillsides.
6,000 people were warned to evacuate before the rains came on Tuesday, according to CNN, but not everyone heeded the warnings.
The rain came a month after the largest California wildfire on record, the Thomas Fire, started raging north of Los Angeles.
"Everybody was so prepared for the fire. Nobody anticipated this," Montecito resident Jennifer Markham told the Associated Press.
Source: Associated Press
The area is home to some wealthy celebrities like Rob Lowe and Bella Hadid.
Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres also share a fence line there.
"The neighbors out back, their houses are gone, just gone," Winfrey told DeGeneres on Face Time, according to HuffPost. "It is as devastating as it can be."
Source: HuffPost
Lawmakers who represented the area sent a letter to President Donald Trump on Friday, pleading for more federal aid.
In the letter, representatives Salud Carbajal and Julia Brownley said residents need more help with housing, disaster unemployment and "crisis counseling."
