Equipment works to clear mud and debris on Refugio Road in the Alisal Fire burn area Tuesday following heavy rain. 
Heavy rainfall and winds send palm fronds into the street in downtown Santa Barbara during the storm. 
A creek along the Gaviota Coast flows Tuesday morning after an overnight storm soaks southern Santa Barbara County. 
Mud and rocks were reported on Refugio Road in the Alisal Fire burn area. 
Mud and debris along the upper stretches of Refugio Road. 
Storm runoff in the lower reaches of Refugio Creek. 
Cold Spring Creek Tuesday morning after the storm. 
The Cold Spring Debris Basin on Tuesday morning after the storm.
An overnight storm dropped record-breaking rainfall on Santa Barbara County, and on Tuesday morning, crews were assessing damage in the Alisal Fire burn area, where county officials ordered evacuations in case of post-fire flooding and debris flows.
County Public Works crews responded to Refugio Road early Tuesday to survey the damage from the storm and clear mud and rocks from the roadway.
Peak rainfall rates above burn area were above 1 inch per hour, exceeding mud and debris flow thresholds, according to Public Works.
Santa Barbara received 0.9 inches of rain on Monday (with most of it coming early Tuesday morning) and beat its 1941 record of 0.15 inches of rain for the date, according to the National Weather Service.
The NWS Los Angeles Office reported that San Marcos Pass had received 6.9 inches of rain as of 4 a.m. Tuesday, which was the most recorded anywhere between San Luis Obispo and Los Angeles counties for this storm. As of 11:30 a.m., that had increased to 7.9 inches.
Other high-rainfall destinations locally include El Deseo near the top of the mountains above Santa Barbara, with 7.4 inches, Tecolote Canyon in the western Goleta Valley, with 6.3 inches, and Refugio Pass on the Gaviota Coast, with 5.7 inches.
Santa Maria reported 1.6 inches as of 11:30 a.m., Lompoc had 2.9 inches, Buellton had 2.2 inches, Solvang had 3.4 inches, Goleta had 2.5 inches, Santa Barbara had 3.5 inches and Carpinteria had 2.4 inches, according to County Public Works rainfall monitoring stations.
An evacuation order for the Alisal Fire burn area was lifted shortly after 2 p.m. Tuesday.
#AlisalFire burn area Evacuation Order remains in place. High rain rates above mud/debris flow thresholds brought down debris, incl. Refugio Rd.; switchbacks are unstable. Crews accessing & clearing roads. Rain expected into late afternoon. Flash Flood Watch extended to 12 pm. pic.twitter.com/HcgwckLwmn — Santa Barbara County (@countyofsb) December 14, 2021
The NWS Flash Flood Watch will be in effect until noon, and southern Santa Barbara County has a high surf advisory through 2 p.m. and a wind advisory through 8 p.m.
The front of the storm had moved on to Ventura and Los Angeles counties as of 8 a.m., according to the NWS forecast, but some rain is expected throughout the day in Santa Barbara County before skies clear on Wednesday.
Overnight rainfall “produces numerous instances of urban and roadway flooding but the rainfall was not intense enough to trigger any debris flow warnings,” according to the NWS Tuesday morning.
Check the latest weather forecast for Santa Barbara here.
— Noozhawk managing editor Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
