County storm facts
Storm prep for Santa Barbara County residents
Santa Barbara County has had 1,309 flood insurance claims since 1978, 36 federal disaster declarations for fires, storms, floods or mudslides since 1969, and 34 mapped wildfires that started here since 2021.
Sources:
Local data from official sources, updated weekly. This snapshot: September 29, 2026. Alerts load live from the National Weather Service when you open this page.
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Source: National Weather Service alerts.
Forecasts for this county (NWS county zone CAC083) come from:
Source: National Weather Service (the exact query), data as of September 29, 2026.
Help right now
Live from FEMA and the Red Cross shelter list. Check your address on the home page for what’s nearest you.
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FEMA assistance
Open shelters
Evacuation status
Live evacuation status isn’t shown here yet. Your county’s evacuation map has the current orders and warnings.
Road conditions
Closures, chain controls and incidents on state highways.
Recent burn areas
34 fires that started in Santa Barbara County since January 1, 2021 have a mapped perimeter, covering 214,658 acres in all.
Largest
| Fire | Year | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| Gifford | 2025 | 131,613 |
| Lake | 2024 | 38,610 |
| Santa Rosa Island | 2026 | 18,379 |
Acres are each fire’s whole mapped area, which can reach past the county line.
Burned hillsides can’t soak up heavy rain, so mud and debris can rush downhill with little warning.
Source: NIFC WFIGS Interagency Fire Perimeters (the exact query), data as of September 29, 2026.
Flood history
1,309 flood insurance claims have been filed in Santa Barbara County since 1978. 395 of them were for floods from 2017 to 2026.
The years with the most claims: 1995 (339), 2018 (183), 1998 (182).
This is history, not a prediction. These are National Flood Insurance Program claims, so they only count insured buildings.
FEMA’s data runs through September 8, 2026.
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA, NFIP Redacted Claims (the exact query), data as of September 29, 2026.
Federal disaster declarations
Santa Barbara County has been part of 36 federal disaster declarations for fires, storms, floods or mudslides since 1969: 15 for fires and 21 for storms, floods or mudslides.
Most recent
- Severe Winter Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, and MudslidesApril 13, 2024 · DR-4769-CA
- Severe Winter Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and MudslidesApril 3, 2023 · DR-4699-CA
- Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and MudslidesMarch 10, 2023 · EM-3592-CA
FEMA’s ids start with DR for a major disaster, EM for an emergency and FM for fire management.
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA, Disaster Declarations Summaries (the exact query), data as of September 29, 2026.
Coast and tsunami
The California Geological Survey maps tsunami hazard areas in Santa Barbara County. If you live, work or travel near the coast or bay shore, check whether your address is in one.
CGS tsunami hazard maps for Santa Barbara County
Source: California Geological Survey tsunami hazard areas (the exact query), data as of September 29, 2026.
Rain in past strong El Niño winters
October–March rainfall at the Santa Barbara Municipal Airport weather station in past strong El Niño winters, compared with its 1991–2020 normal.
Oct–Mar rainfall in past strong El Niño winters, as % of the 1991–2020 normal — Santa Barbara Municipal Airport
5 of the 6 strong El Niño winters on record at Santa Barbara Municipal Airport were wetter than normal. They ranged from 61% of normal (2015-16) to 192% (1982-83) — a tendency, not a guarantee.
| Winter | ONI (DJF) | Oct–Mar total | % of normal | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957-58 | 1.69 | 21.49 in | 135% | NOAA NCEI daily precipitation |
| 1972-73 | 1.55 | 24.28 in | 152% | NOAA NCEI daily precipitation |
| 1982-83 | 2.14 | 30.60 in | 192% | NOAA NCEI daily precipitation |
| 1991-92 | 1.54 | 17.87 in | 112% | NOAA NCEI daily precipitation |
| 2015-16 | 2.50 | 9.65 in | 61% | NOAA NCEI daily precipitation |
| 2023-24 | 1.84 | 24.05 in | 151% | NOAA NCEI daily precipitation |
NCEI has no complete record at this station for 1997-98.
Source: NOAA NCEI (the exact query), data as of September 29, 2026.
Local help
Alerts sign-up, free sandbags, evacuation zones and help lines for this county.
- Emergency management office / alerts sign-upSanta Barbara County Sheriff Aware & Prepare (opens in a new tab)
- 211 / 311211 Santa Barbara County (unverified — search for it directly)Call 211, or (805) 687-7611
- Evacuation mapGenasys Protect (opens in a new tab)
- SandbagsCity of Santa Barbara sandbags (opens in a new tab)
- Help finding food, shelter and other services211 California (opens in a new tab)Call 211
Power and internet outages
Power
- Outage mapSouthern California Edison (SCE) (opens in a new tab)
- Planned power shutoffs (PSPS)CPUC Public Safety Power Shutoff resources (opens in a new tab)
Internet and phone
- Carrier statusAT&T outage map (opens in a new tab)
- Carrier statusSpectrum service status (opens in a new tab)
- Regional internet outagesCloudflare Radar — internet outages (opens in a new tab)
4 more we haven’t verified: search for them by name
- Carrier statusVerizon outage/status
- Carrier statusT-Mobile service status
- Carrier statusXfinity/Comcast support
- Carrier statusFrontier outage map
What about your street?
County numbers can’t tell you about your home. Check your address against the official flood, fire, landslide and tsunami maps.