At 6:24 a.m. on June 29, an earthquake estimated as strong as 6.8 hit Santa Barbara, destroying 85 percent of the town’s commercial buildings in 18 seconds. The quake also caused liquefaction in the foothills underneath the Sheffield Dam, causing it to fail, releasing a 45-million-gallon torrent. This floodwave rushed seaward between Voluntario and Alisos streets, carrying trees, boulders, and urban debris. Fortunately, further damage was avoided when the local utility company shut off gas lines to prevent the eruption of major fires. Most damage occurred in the downtown area, with much of lower State Street being reduced to rubble.

Many Santa Barbara residents spent that summer sleeping outside, as aftershocks periodically rolled through, threatening unstable buildings. The quake caused $8 million in damages and claimed 13 lives, the last of which occurred exactly one year later, on June 29, 1926, when an aftershock caused a damaged chimney to collapse on a little boy.

The Refugio Fire of September 1955 was one of the first large-scale wildfires to strike Santa Barbara County in the age of modern fire management. After the establishment of the U.S. Forest Service in 1905, strategy focused on the suppression fires, both natural and human-caused. Decades of rapid and effective response to even remote and naturally occurring fires allowed for a massive buildup of dry fuel through the entire San Ynez range.

At around 1 a.m. on September 6, a structure fire on La Chirpa Ranch (now named La Scherpa) triggered by an electrical malfunction, providing the spark that would trigger a massive 80,000-acre fire across the coastal range.

As ranch hands attempted to extinguish the burning structure, the situation rapidly grew out of control and a call was placed to the Santa Barbara County Fire Department. Realizing the fire was outside their jurisdiction, county firefighters contacted Forest Service personnel, who quickly mobilized to assess the threat. All hope of an easy containment was lost as winds caused the fire to grow rapidly in all directions. Initially, the Forest Service divided its resources to fight along the west, south, and east edges of the fire but this quickly overwhelmed their resources. After a hard-fought rescue of the Circle Bar B Guest Ranch, all efforts to save Goleta became a priority.

Firefighters utilized bulldozers and hand crews to create fuel breaks in the hills above Goleta as ridgeline fire began sending fingers down the canyons. However, as harsh winds persisted, these fire lines proved ineffective and were continuously overrun. Realizing that greater resources were needed, additional units were called in from across the state command units reorganized at the San Marcos Trout Club.

Firefighters managed to take advantage of extra hands as well as a pause in the wind to gain the upperhand on the fire’s western flank on September 8. As the fire’s westward threat was all but over, the eastern and northern flanks continue to burn into the backcountry uncontrolled before eventually running out of fuel and dying out on September 15. The fire’s sheer size and ferocity caused a fundamental shift in the way firefighters think about fire management in a chaparral environment. New strategies, such as controlled burning, fuel removal, and rapid/effective communication between authorities would become more relevant factors in managing forests in the years to come.

The Coyote Fire began on September 22, off Coyote Road, east of Sycamore Canyon, and burned for 10 days before being declared under control. The wildfire’s maximum perimeter was 160 miles and a total of 67,000 acres were burned, 21,000 of which was private land. There was one reported death and 18 injuries, as well as 85 burned homes. Roughly 30,000 acres of the burned area were in the south-slope mountain drainages at risk for subsequent debris flows.

Just over a month later, on November 9, a rain burst of upward of 1.15 inches caused severe flooding of Cold Spring, Hot Springs, Montecito, and San Ysidro creeks. Eye witnesses in Cold Spring Canyon reported 20-foot walls of water, mud, rocks, and logs rushing at 15 miles per hour. Bridges that were not immediately swept away became clogged with logs and rocks, forcing backed-up water and debris to move laterally through nearby residential areas, causing severe damage. While devastating, some of the damaging effects of the flood were greatly mitigated by previous channel-clearing efforts conducted by the Army Corps of Engineers.

Montecito Creek become plugged under a bridge at Hot Springs Road, forcing the debris-latten water to flow down Hot Springs and Olive Mill roads. The flow continued down into the Lower Village, where it damaged commercial buildings and crossed the overpass to spill into streets on the south side of Highway 101.

Higher up, Hot Springs Creek backed up and diverted into the Riven Rock neighborhood, causing damage to landscaping and garages. San Ysidro Creek also backed up, pushing a deep mudflow onto East Valley Road.

An act of arson, the Romero Fire was started on October 6, 1971, when a man threw an improvised fire bomb onto the steep dry slopes off Bella Vista Drive. The fire was reported about 30 minutes later when the smoke became visible in the hills behind Montecito and Summerland. The Forest Service responded, with the aid of Montecito and Carpinteria firefighters; however it was immediately apparent that the fire had already grown out of control. Aircraft and hand crews were dispatched to hold the fire at the East Camino Cielo fuel gap. However, as the sun set, Santa Ana winds push the fire down the mountainside and across Bella Vista Drive and Ladera Lane, destroying four houses. By the next morning the fire had burned all the way through Toro Canyon, threatening Carpinteria. With weather forecasts looking good, bulldozers are sent to cut a fire break through Santa Monica Canyon. Unfortunately, the weather predictions were incorrect, and another unexpected windstorm caused the fire to explode eastward toward the bulldozer crews. Many of the operators managed to escape the blaze, but four were killed when the fire trapped them on the ridgeline.

         The next day, the fire continued eastward, and by Sunday it had reached Carpinteria High School. Luckily, a sea breeze managed to push the flames back up the hill before the fire could spread into downtown Carpinteria. For three days the fire continued eastward towards Ventura as an aggressive aerial assault continued. Eventually, firefighters managed to gain the upperhand and stop the fire at Rincon Creek, after it had burned 15,600 acres. 

As the rainy season approached, the possibility of flooding loomed over the burn zone. In December, five days of steady rain caused moderate to severe flooding along Romero and Toro Canyon creeks. In Summerland, flooding shut down Highway 101 and the railroad for several hours.

The winter of 1983 brought strong storms and unusually high surf to the Southern California coast. On the back of a record breaking El Niño, a series of storms lashed the coast, damaging numerous structures from Padaro Lane to Miramar Beach, as well as Stearns Wharf and Santa Barbara Harbor. Swollen Refugio Creek claimed the life of a teen-aged girl. On January 28, as a storm surge rode a full-moon high tide, waves in excess of seven feet crashed into houses along Edgecliff Lane and Miramar Beach, leaving about 40 homes badly damaged. Another 50 homes, from Santa Barbara to Ventura, also sustained damage. 

The following night, another storm dropped nearly two inches of rain, accompanied by 51-mph winds recorded in Santa Barbara Harbor. By morning, the storm had knocked out power to more than 36,000 Edison customers and uprooted hundreds of trees countywide. 

On March 2, waves topping 20 feet crashed into Stearns Wharf and took out more than 50 pilings. The nearby Santa Barbara Yacht Club was severely damaged and the harbor filled with wreckage and debris. Damages to the harbor alone were estimated at $1.5 million. Waves destroyed four homes and damaged dozens more on Padaro Lane. Seaside roads were flooded by stormsurf and excessive rainfall.

The Paint Fire — more commonly referred to as the Painted Cave Fire — began on June 27, 1990, and was the most intense and destructive fire to burn the Santa Barbara area in decades. The month of June had been unusually hot and dry. The temperature on the day of the fire reached 109 degrees, and gusting winds maxed out at 75 mph. 

Stemming from a property dispute, the fire was started intentionally around 6 p.m. near Highway 154 and Painted Cave Road. Pushed by offshore winds coming down San Marcos Pass, the wildfire quickly destroyed everything in its path as residents escaped with little time to gather belongings. As the firestorm reached the bottom of Highway 154, firefighters and civilians watched in awe as it jumped all six lanes of Highway 101 and burned toward Hope Ranch.

Fortunately that night, the wind changed direction, coming off the ocean to push the fire back into its own burn scar, where there was no fuel remaining. Firefighters contained the blaze a few days later. The fire burned 5,000 acres and claimed 500 homes and buildings and one life.

The flooding events of 1998 arrived on a strong El Niño and occurred throughout the month of February. 

The first major incident occurred on February 2, when a storm bringing 63 mph winds took down hundreds of trees and powerlines, putting thousands of homes in the dark across Goleta and Santa Barbara. The next day, 15-foot-high waves damaged pilings under Stearns Wharf and a broken sewer line near Arroyo Burro Beach, closing several nearby beaches due to high levels of bacteria buildup. Flooding along a Gaviota creek caused damage to a Chevron facility, resulting in the accidental release of hazardous materials. The airport also closed down due to flood, and Highway 101 was shut down in Ventura.

On February 6, another storm brought intense rainfall to the Goleta area and overwhelmed Las Vegas, Encina, and San Pedro creeks. UCSB students were dismissed due to inundated classrooms and street flooding was widespread throughout Isla Vista and downtown Goleta. The airport was once again closed due to flooding, and major disruptions of transportation were widespread throughout the South Coast. In Santa Barbara, minor to moderate flooding occurred throughout town. Sycamore Canyon was evacuated, and one hiker drowned in Rattlesnake Canyon. 

The El Niño’s final blow came on February 23-24 as heavy rain hit Montecito. All the major creeks overflowed and houses along San Leandro Lane, Veloz Drive, Santa Rosa Drive, and Olive Mill Road experienced flooding. While the events of 1998 were not as severe for the South Coast as the 1995 event, significant flooding and related damages occurred throughout the county, especially in the San Ynez, Lompoc, and Santa Maria valleys.

Started on July 1 as an act of arson, the Gap Fire quickly became the most dangerous fire to hit the Santa Barbara front country since 1990’s Paint Fire. When firefighters arrived to West Camino Cielo Road, the blaze had spread less than a quarter of an acre and was nearly extinguished before a sudden wind gust caused the fire to spread rapidly toward Goleta. Nearly 200 personnel accompanied by helicopters and bulldozers were sent out to fight the flames and began evacuations of La Patera and Glen Annie canyons.

By day two, only a few hundred acres had burned, and the fire seemed to be diminishing until another sundowner event fueled 100-foot-high flames.

By day three, the blaze had spread to 2,000 acres and was becoming a substantial threat to much of Goleta. The fire burned through power lines in Glen Annie Canyon, causing loss of power to nearly 150,000 homes from Isla Vista to Montecito, and a state of emergency was declared. Mandatory evacuations were ordered from West Camino Cielo to Cathedral Oaks between Fairview and Patterson, and also for the Haney Tract, Kinevan Ranch, Hidden Valley, and San Marcos Trout Club. 

By July 4, there were 800 firefighters with 20 airplanes battling a blaze now spanning 5,500 acres. Firefighters along North Fairview Avenue saved hundreds of houses. By that evening, the fire was burning on three fronts — northward toward Camino Cielo; and east and west toward Highway 154 and downtown Goleta, respectively.

Mandatory evacuations expanded to Farren Road to Highway 154 as 50 mph sundowners threatened 100 homes in the Painted Cave and Trout Club communities. 

By the morning of July 5, nearly 8,300 acres had been burned as the number of assigned personnel grew to 2,500. Firefighters held the fire’s progress at West Camino Cielo and along its southern and eastern flanks in Goleta. More favorable weather conditions and brush-clearing helped shift the battle toward Gaviota, but this main fire front was now heading into more difficult terrain. 

The fire burned in the hills until July 28, blackending nearly 10,000 acres but causing relatively little structural damage. Firefighters credited the agricultural barrier of green avocado orchards and irrigated soil surrounding Goleta with saving the town.

The Jesusita Fire began on May 5 and burned until May 18, blackening 8,733 acres. The fire destroyed 80 homes and 79 outbuildings and commercial properties and was called the worst disaster in 25 years by Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown. 

The fire was started by accident when contractors working on an  unpermitted clearing of the Jesusita Trail left hot equipment unattended in dry grass. Aided by 50 mph winds, the blaze quickly grew to 150 acres and a mandatory evacuation was issued for 1,200 homes north of Foothill Road, east of Morada Lane, and west of El Cielito and Gibraltar roads. 

Heavy winds in the night caused the fire to grow rapidly and by the next morning the fire had exploded in two directions, burning 20 homes in San Roque Canyon to the west and bearing down on the Tea Fire burn scar to the east. Mandatory evacuations were expanded to include most of San Roque and Mission Canyon, as well as much of the Upper Riviera to State Street.

High winds continued that night and by morning of May 7, the wildfire had expanded to 3,500 acres. On the western flank, evacuations were again expanded to include the areas of De La Vina, Vernon, and Los Positas, as well as the area along Highway 101, Upper State Street and Highway 154. On the eastern flank, the areas of Milpas Street to San Ysidro Road and all the way up to Camino Cielo were evacuated as the fire pressed towards Montecito. In total, 30,000 residents were temporarily displaced.

More strong winds made things worse. The following morning, Chief Andrew DiMizio explained that “all hell broke loose” overnight as the blaze expanded in both directions in just a few hours. Total acreage burned had reached 8,700. Fortunately, staring on May 9, the situation began to improve as cool and humid weather came off the ocean and sundowners subsided. With nearly 4,000 firefighters, 12 airplanes, and 15 helicopters now gaining the upper hand, containment increased to 40%. The fire continued to burn into uninhabited backcountry, and the city of Santa Barbara was no longer in danger. The fire continued to smolder until it was finally extinguished on May 18. It caused an estimated $20 million in damages.

The Rey fire began around 3:15 pm on August 18th, 2016 when a dying tree fell on power lines near White Rock Campground. Within two day the fire had grown to over 10,000 acres, fueled by dense fuel buildup and erratic winds. Initially the firefighting effort proved difficult as the dense smoke plume made it difficult to determine the fire’s full size and area. Luckily, cool temperatures and nighttime marine layers allowed helicopters to more accurately judge the fire area and direction. These same weather conditions helped slow the fires growth at night and extensive fire lines along roads helped increase containment. By September 1st the fire was 96% contained and by September 16th it was extinguished. In total the blaze reached over 23,500 acres but damaged zero structures and claimed zero lives. In the aftermath, SoCal Edison and Frontier Communications were accused for being partially responsible for the fire in Court. SoCal had supposedly been aware of the danger posed by the dying tree and failed to take action. Frontier Communications also failed to conduct proper brush clearing underneath lines that went down.

The Thomas Fire began on December 4 in Santa Paula, about 40 miles east of Santa Barbara. In the coming weeks, it became the largest fire in the history of California recordkeeping. The wildfire began when strong winds caused SoCal Edison power lines near Thomas Aquinas College to explode in an electrical arc, igniting dry grass below. Flued by strong winds, the fire grew to 500 acres within an hour and crossed Highway 150 into Santa Paula. 

At around 10 p.m., the fire took out a SoCal Edison plant and knocked out power to some 100,000 homes and businesses, including most of the city of Ventura and up through Goleta. By 11 p.m. the fire had grown to 20,000 acres and was visible in the hills above Ventura City Hall. Thousands of residents evacuated. By daybreak, the fire had grown to 40,000 acres and 150 buildings in Ventura had been destroyed including Vista Del Mar hospital.

That morning, the fire’s western front jumped Highway 33 and began burning into Casitas Springs while its eastern front burned towards the town of Fillmore. The fire was now 50,000 acres and a mandatory 10 p.m. curfew was issued for the entire city of Ventura. A boil-water warning was also issued for the cities of Ventura and Ojai as the fire threatened pumps at Casitas Water District, and the town of La Conchita, along the edge of the Pacific Ocean, was evacuated. 

By 9 a.m. on December 6, the fire had grown to 65,000 acres with zero containment and a hazardous air warning had been issued for the cities of Ventura, Oxnard, and Camarillo, as thick smoke was blown back at the coast by onshore winds. That evening, as the bulk of the blaze burned west from Ventura, the northern edge of the fire burned up and around the mountains surrounding the city of Ojai. The entire city was placed under a rapid mandatory evacuation.

That night, the fire’s southern edge moved closer to La Conchita and jumped Highway 101 at Seacliff Drive. Authorities closed the freeway in both directions. The fire continued to burn through the hills and by 6 p.m. on December 7, it had burned 115,000 acres and destroyed 439 structures. The next morning, ash was falling like snow from Ventura to Santa Barbara and people were told to stay inside and to wear dust masks outside. By then, 3,500 firefighters, 21 helicopters, 544 engines, 46 hand crews, and 26 bulldozers had been assigned to the now 132,000-acre fire that was only 10% contained. By December 9, the bulk of the blaze had moved on from Ventura and most of the city was taken off of mandatory evacuation. Some 530 structures had burned.

While Ventura was now mostly safe, the fire continued to grow rapidly and that night entered Santa Barbara County. At 1:40 a.m. on December 10, rolling blackouts began to hit Carpinteria and Santa Barbara. By 6 a.m. that morning mandatory evacuations were issued for large areas of Carpinteria, Summerland, and Montecito as the fire crept west along the mountainsides. 

By noon, evacuation advisories were issued for much of eastern Santa Barbara as the blaze exploded into the foothills. By 6 p.m. the fire had grown to 230,000 acres and was so hot that it was creating its own weather patterns. 

For the next two days the fire steadily crept north and west along the foothills as firefighters took advantage of onshore winds to perform a controlled backburn. By December 15, the fire had burned nearly 260,000 acres but containment was up to 40%, and its growth along the Santa Barbara foothills had been slowed by effective firefighting. 

Just as people began to hope the blaze was reaching its conclusion, the Thomas fire roared back to life for a final show on the morning of December 16. Winds of up to 65 mph winds caused the fire to explode along the ridgeline. Evacuation were issued for all neighborhoods above Alameda Padre Serra and Salinas Street and the national guard was deployed to help maintain order.

As the fire’s westward expansion was halted the next day as it hit the Tea and Jesusita burn scars. From there, it continued to burn remote backcountry. By December 21, all evacuation orders in Santa Barbara County were lifted. The 272,000-acre fire was 65% contained. Over the next several days, containment grew significantly and by Christmas, firefighters had achieved 88%.

Full contained was reached on January 12, 2018. The Thomas Fire burned 281,000 acres, then the largest wildfire in state history. In total, 1063 structures were destroyed and two people lost their lives — one firefighter and a woman who died in a car accident fleeing the fire.

Record-setting daytime temperatures spiked past 102 degrees during the evening of Friday, July 6, as strong sundowners blasted much of Santa Barbara’s coastal region. At approximately 8:40 p.m., emergency personnel received the first 9-1-1 call about a fast-moving wildfire in the Holiday Hill neighborhood, located north of Cathedral Oaks Road in Goleta. The first wave of firefighters arrived within four minutes after dispatch; the fire had already ignited nine homes.

Of the more than 3,000 nearby residents alerted, an estimated 2,500 evacuated. By midnight, the Holiday Fire had consumed more than 100 acres and 20 structures, including a dozen homes. Public safety leaders declared a local emergency around 1 a.m. on Saturday. Firefighters received a respite about an hour later as the winds settled down and temperatures slowly dropped. The fire was under control within about 12 hours of breaking out and most of the evacuated returned to their homes late Saturday and Sunday.

The hot winds and record temperatures — unofficially recorded as 106 on Holiday Hill — also damaged avocado crops at Las Varas Ranch, eight miles to the west, where the temperature hit 115.