Santa Barbara County leaders are holding a press conference Saturday afternoon (watch above) to update the community on the county’s storm response.
An atmospheric river storm is forecast to reach the Central and South Coasts Saturday afternoon with heavy rain and strong winds expected throughout the day on Sunday.
As of Friday afternoon, an evacuation warning was already in place for the following areas of Santa Barbara County:
- Properties along waterways associated with the Thomas, Cave and Alisal fire burn areas
- Properties in the vicinity of Sycamore Creek, from Stanwood Dr. to parts of Ninos Dr., in the city of Santa Barbara
The American Red Cross has opened an evacuation shelter for affected residents at the Santa Barbara Community College Wake Center, located at 300 N. Turnpike Rd. in Santa Barbara.
Anyone with questions about evacuation procedures or other storm-related issues can call the Santa Barbara County Call Center at 833-688-5551 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday.
California state officials also spoke about the state’s response to the storm in a press conference Saturday at noon (watch below):