Mud ravages seaside haven for celebrities and billionaires

Montecito

THE mudslides on the California coastal town of Montecito have devastated a wealthy enclave where billionaires including Charlie Munger, Eric Schmidt and Oprah Winfrey own properties, with hundreds of millions of dollars of damage in one of America's most expensive real estate markets.

Sixty-five single-family homes were destroyed and 462 damaged by the flooding and mudslides that struck the city on Tuesday after the first winter storm to hit the region, said Amber Anderson, a spokeswoman for Santa Barbara County. Seventeen people have died and five were missing as at early Friday.