California battles record-breaking snow, rain, thousands without power

A significant winter storm over the last several days has wreaked havoc in California, causing some cities to flood and leaving nearly 85,000 households and businesses without power in Los Angeles. Storms continued to pummel parts of California, swelling rivers to dangerous levels and dropping snow in even low-lying areas around Los Angeles. More than 7 inches of rain fell in Ventura County, causing flash flooding early Saturday morning.

The National Weather Service said it was one of the strongest storms to ever hit southwest California. Even as the volume of rain and wind slowed down, the storm continued to have a significant impact including snowfall down to elevations as low as 1,000 feet.

"As one winter storm moves through California, the West Coast will experience another round of winter storms on Sunday that will bring heavy snow to the Cascades and Coastal Ranges with the greatest focus on the Sierra Nevada," the National Weather Service said in its latest tweet.

Hills around suburban Santa Clarita, north of Los Angeles, were blanketed in white, and snow also surprised inland suburbs to the east. Strong frigid winds toppled trees and down power lines, posing risks of more power outages.