Residents in parts of Santa Barbara Country are being urged to evacuate ahead of a winter storm expected to hit the area on Thursday.
The Sheriff’s Office recommended that those living in parts of Goleta, Santa Barbara, Montecito, Summerland and Carpinteria to evacuate beginning at 8am on Wednesday.
‘This is giving them more than enough warning to begin to prepare,’ Terri Nisich, a county spokeswoman told the LA Times.
‘Those with access and functional needs, people that need more time leaving an area, [should] begin to move.’
Meteorologists predict that the storm will bring one-third to two-thirds of an inch of rain per hour at certain points through Friday, enough to potentially trigger another round of mud and debris flows near burn areas
Residents in parts of Santa Barbara Country are being urged to evacuate ahead of a winter storm expected to hit the area Thursday (Pictured, the Cold Spring Debris Dam in Montecito completely cleaned out and ready for new storms
Meteorologists predict that the storm will bring one-third to two-thirds of an inch of rain per hour at certain points through Friday, as it moves from the north
Crews were seen on working hurriedly on Wednesday to clear as much debris as possible ahead of the incoming rain.
Kathy Hoxsie, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard, told the LA Times that the heaviest rain is expected over the mountains behind Montecito and Santa Barbara,
‘It’s a very moist system and unfortunately it really goes right over’ the Thomas fire burn scar, she told the newspaper.
Residents who live near and below mountains burned by the deadly wildfires that occurred last year are ‘strongly recommended to relocate to safer locations for their own safety,’ the county said in an advisory issued Tuesday.
‘High risk for loss of life and property exists.’
Residents who live near and below mountains burned by the deadly wildfires that occurred last year are ‘strongly recommended to relocate to safer locations for their own safety’ (Pictured, the Cold Spring Debris Dam in Montecito completely cleaned out and ready for new storms)
The community is still recovering from destructive mudslides sent a torrent of mud and boulders sweeping through neighborhoods on January 9 that killed 21 people
Officials also urged residents to monitor the county’s website for updates and sign up for the county’s Aware and Prepare emergency alert system. They said they would provide more details on evacuations Wednesday evening. If authorities order mandatory evacuations, residents must leave designated areas by 9 a.m. Thursday.
The community is still recovering from destructive mudslides sent a torrent of mud and boulders sweeping through neighborhoods on January 9.
Homes and businesses were destroyed, and 21 people were killed. Two others are still missing.
Officials announced this month that they will no longer use ‘voluntary’ in their evacuation alerts after concerns that the warnings they pushed out before the deadly storm were ineffective in getting people to leave.