Image copyright AP Image caption Vehicles trying to negotiate flooded Interstate 5 in Williams, north California, where more rain is expected

A fierce storm, dubbed "bombogenesis" or "weather bomb", has eased in southern California, while pressing on further north in the US state.

Torrential rain, flash floods and mud slides wreaked havoc on Friday and early Saturday, killing at least five people.

Metrologists said it was the worst storm to hit California in years.

Forecasters warned residents in the north, including San Francisco, to expect more heavy rain on Sunday.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Two cars fell into sinkhole in Los Angeles during the storm

Meteorologists described the storm as "bombogenesis", an intense extra-tropical cyclonic low-pressure area, or "a weather bomb".

Image copyright AP Image caption A fire engine being recovered close to Los Angeles after part of a freeway collapsed from the heavy rain

One man was killed after a tree fell and pulled a power line on to his car in the Sherman Oaks area of Los Angeles.

A second person died in a vehicle when it was submerged by a flash flood in the town of Victorville.

Two others died in car accidents in the San Diego area, and another person was found dead after being swept into a creek in Ventura County.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption California braces for more rain

Evacuation orders were lifted in the towns of Duarte on Saturday afternoon (local time).

The north of the state has already experienced fears of flooding at the tallest dam in the country, Oroville Dam, when more than 180,000 residents were evacuated from their homes last week.

Authorities at the dam have been working to lower the level of the lake and have said it has continued to fall despite the storm.