Heavy Rains a Problem for Hikers, Motorists : Storms: Four people are rescued Sunday after being lost in the downpour. Power is knocked out for 5,000 customers in Somis.

The latest in a trio of Pacific storms rumbled through Ventura County on Sunday, dumping more than an inch and a half of rain by early afternoon and catching four weekend hikers off guard.

Muddy, rain-slickened trails confounded two sets of hikers, who were lost in the Sycamore Canyon area of Santa Monica Mountains Recreation Area between Thousand Oaks and Malibu. They were later rescued.

But the greatest concern for county officials Sunday was in the La Conchita beachfront community north of Ventura, where they feared that further rains could hasten another massive landslide that geologists said was imminent.

Elsewhere in the county, the California Highway Patrol and other agencies reported a handful of minor traffic accidents due to rain, but no one was injured.

One northbound Ventura Freeway motorist lost control of his car just south of the Seaward Avenue off-ramp, rolling the vehicle onto the emergency lane. The driver was unharmed, the CHP said.

Traffic was limited to one lane on the northbound Ventura Freeway south of Seacliff, when a mudslide oozed across a portion of the highway.

In Thousand Oaks, Police Officer Joaquin Diaz suffered minor injuries when he lost control of his cruiser on Lynn Road about 3:30 Sunday morning. He was treated at Los Robles Regional Medical Center and released.

Meanwhile, more than 5,000 homes and businesses in Somis and central and east Ventura lost electricity Sunday afternoon as high winds knocked down power lines.

“The wind just kicked up, and that’s when everything happened,” said Tony Wilson, area manager for Southern California Edison. “You have soil loosened by the rains, and the winds flare up. And that’s when it happens.”

Wilson said he expected power to be restored to all of the homes and businesses by late Sunday.

Forecasters called for possible showers continuing through this morning before the storm dissipates. But another weather system bustling toward Southern California is due by Wednesday.

“On both Monday and Tuesday we’re expecting just a light chance of showers or sprinkles,” said meteorologist Curtis Brack of WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times. “Otherwise, it will be mostly cloudy.

“But there’s a larger storm still sitting out over the Pacific,” Brack said. “It’s pulling lots of tropical moisture, so we’re expecting a large one to hit about Wednesday.”

That new weather pattern will probably drop more than an inch of rain on Ventura County between Wednesday and Friday, by which time it is expected to taper off, Brack said.

A weekend-long flash-flood watch in most west county communities was called off at midnight Sunday, although a winter storm warning was extended through this morning as forecasters called for clearing skies.

For hikers, the weather also presented unusual problems.

An off-duty Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy and his 4-year-old daughter were found early Sunday after spending the night sheltered somewhere inside the Santa Monica Mountains Recreation Area, said Ventura County Sheriff’s Sgt. Ray Nagel.

Michael Arias and his daughter, Sierra Phillips, emerged from the mountains at Rancho Sierra Vista, near Newbury Park, about noon Sunday, a day after they began a hike through the Santa Monica Mountains.

“They got beyond their means, it started raining on them and they just got lost,” said Nagel, who added that the two were treated at Los Robles hospital and released.

Arias told officials that he found two female hikers Sunday morning who were also lost. With Arias’ help, rangers located those two women and escorted them to safety.

* SLIDE ADVANCES: Geologists warn of more danger in La Conchita. A1

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

County Rainfall

Here are rainfall figures from the Ventura County Flood Control Department for the 24-hour period ending at 5 p.m. Sunday. Oct. 1 is the beginning of the official rain year.

Rainfall Rainfall Normal rainfall Location last 24 hours since Oct. 1 to date Camarillo 0.43 19.08 9.95 Casitas Dam 0.47 38.47 17.66 El Rio 0.63 23.68 11.63 Fillmore 0.28 26.21 14.31 Moorpark 0.47 20.58 10.86 Ojai 0.39 32.53 16.01 Upper Ojai 0.47 40.21 17.39 Port Hueneme 0.35 20.66 10.69 Piru 0.20 25.34 12.75 Santa Paula 0.28 27.17 13.42 Simi Valley 0.47 21.94 10.54 Thousand Oaks 0.43 21.51 11.38 Ventura Govt. Center 0.59 25.17 12.09