Californians left homeless by wildfire brace for heavy rain and mud

Helicopter pilots look for a landing spot during a rescue made on the fly during the Woolsey Fire in Malibu, California, in this November 9, 2018 still image taken from helmet camera footage by LAFD David Nordquist. LAFD/David Nordquist/Social Media/via REUTERS

CHICO, Calif. (Reuters) - Northern California residents left homeless by the deadliest, most destructive wildfire in state history braced for a new bout of misery on Tuesday from showers expected to plunge encampments of evacuees into rain-soaked fields of mud.

The impending Pacific storm was also certain to hinder search teams sifting through ash and rubble for remains of additional victims in a disaster that already has claimed at least 81 lives and left hundreds more missing.