CALIFORNIA BRACES FOR MELTDOWN

Sunny weather did little to assuage fears of further flooding today in waterlogged California. Following a week of killer rainstorms, clear skies brought the threat of fresh flooding as mountain snow started to melt into overflowing reservoirs, lakes and streams. Some 100 miles north of San Francisco, hundreds of people fled their homes as the 30-mile-long Clearlake overflowed. During the past two weeks, flooding throughout the state has forced 7,000 Californians to evacuate their homes and has left at least 14 dead. Gov. Pete Wilson expanded his request for federal disaster funding today, seeking to make 48 of 56 California counties eligible for government relief. The state has estimated $303 million in livestock and agricultural losses so far as a result of the floods. Forecasters are predicting another storm for the Northern California this weekend.