Skaggs said church officials had been aware of the danger posed by mudslides after the fires. "We had done some sandbagging, and we were prepared for what we could prepare for," he said. "But when something like this happens, there's nothing you can do. It was an act of God."
About 50 relatives and friends of those missing gathered at the San Bernardino church Friday afternoon for a prayer service. Breaking into clusters of twos and threes, they locked arms, formed small circles and prayed. Some sobbed; others cried, "Please, God" in Spanish.
In Devore, at least 30 trailer homes were swept up in the mudslide, along with vehicles and other debris, some of which nearly reached Interstate 215, about a mile south of the KOA campground Two creeks flow through the facility. Mud and rocks swept into some single-family homes, blowing out the back walls.
In some areas, gnarled, uprooted trees lay in piles like beaver dams. A dead bear could be seen on the side of the road against some small trees and wood pilings.
The bodies of Nuss and Bradley were found Friday morning, less than a mile from the campground, according to San Bernardino County Fire Chief Sid Hultquist.
"It took out about half of the campground," Hultquist said. "We're searching trailer by trailer, room by room, for victims." By Friday evening, no other bodies had been found, and there were no people reported missing there.
Bradley had been with her boyfriend, Doug Pooch, on the porch of her home at the campground when they were swept away by the onslaught of mud, rocks and water, according to her daughter, Tonya Best, 38, of Corona. Pooch was carried almost to the 215, but managed to make his way to a call box and summon help, according to Best. Bradley's body was found about 25 yards away, according to her son, Tim Barnes, 40.
"Doug said he was trapped under mud and water and rolling," Best said. "At the hospital he was asking, 'Did we find her? Did we find her?' "
Best said her mother, brother and Pooch had all been supposed to be at Best's home for Christmas dinner, but had called to say the weather was too bad for them to travel. "Tanya," Best recalled her mother as saying, "this is worse than the fires."
She said her mother had told her that she was trying to find the highest ground, and thought the porch might be it.
"They were just sitting ducks waiting," the daughter said.
