Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres struggled to hold back tears as she face-timed with media mogul Oprah Winfrey to discuss the Montecito mudslides that have brought deadly destruction to their neighbourhood in Santa Barbara County, California.

The death toll from Tuesday's mudslides stands at 17.

DeGeneres, 59, became emotional during an episode of her daytime talk show as she shared how she and her wife Portia de Rossi were forced to evacuate from their home, reports people.com.

"This room is always so full of positivity and love and today I really need it. So many times over the past 15 years people have come up to me and say to me that when they're going through a tough time this show helps them through it. Today, I need you because there's a lot going on in my life right now," she told the audience and viewers.

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"One of the things that I want to talk about is you know, we've had these terrible fires all over California and one of the hardest hit areas is where I live in Montecito. We have had mandatory evacuations," DeGeneres said.

They were made to evacuate over fears of mudslides.

"After everything we've been through, I think a lot of people thought they were just being overly cautious, but exactly what they feared happened. The rain triggered massive mudslides. Massive," she said, sharing a photo of the street in front of her house that was filled with mud-covered debris from fallen trees to boulders.

Winfrey too shared with the studio audience what her own home looks like, reports people.com

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