"Total shock, total shock. When you notice the fragility of life, you never know," Rosalind Meisel said.
This is what's left of a camping tent at a northern California wildlife preserve. Inside, a 70-year-old grandmother was killed by this massive oak tree-- uprooted during the storm.
She was reading a bedtime story to her granddaughter when the tree came crashing down. Nearby campers rushed to help.
"They had heard the tree come down and then heard screaming and then when they saw what happened they used a pair of scissors to cut into the tent and got the 7 year old girl out," Matt McCaffrey said.
The storm system is blowing in a second round of pounding rain across southern California triggering car-swallowing mudslides near Los Angeles.
It's the same region where just last week dozens of homes were damaged by mud.
"Seen two or three cars off the side of the road."
To the northeast-- Flagstaff, Arizona could get more than a foot of snow.
In New Mexico, crews are working to clear snow-slicked roads after nearly 6 inches fell and more is on the way in Washington State.
"We're just seeing a lot of people not prepared," Keith Leary said.
Authorities are warning residents to take the snow seriously-- and to stay off the roads if they can.
