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Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, Ellen and Oprah evacuate Montecito due to heavy rainfall

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex speaks at "Vax Live: The Concert to Reunite the World" in Inglewood, Calif. on May 2, 2021, left, and Oprah Winfrey appears at the 75th annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif. on Jan. 7, 2018. Winfrey and Prince Harry's series "The Me You Can't See" will debut on May 21 on Apple TV+ plus. (AP Photo)

The massive amount of rainfall in the Santa Barbara County community of Montecito prompted officials to put mandatory evacuations in place.

Residents of the seaside community were urged to leave due to “unprecedented” rainfall.


The town was inundated by more than seven inches of rain in just 12 hours on Monday, and more on tap for today.

Montecito is home to many celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. About 10,000 people were ordered to evacuate on Monday.

DeGeneres showed just how dangerous the situation in her own backyard was as a result of the storm.

She posted a video to social media showing a very swollen river.

“Montecito is under mandatory evacuation,” she tweeted. “We are on higher ground so they asked us to shelter in place. Please stay safe everyone.”

The evacuations happened on the fifth anniversary of a series of mudslides that killed 23 people and destroyed more than 100 homes.

The evacuation orders were lifted for all of Santa Barbara County, including Montecito, around 2 p.m. Tuesday.

Another storm is expected to arrive in Southern California Saturday.