For the second day in a row, authorities were searching early Sunday for a mountain lion spotted at a condominium complex near Santa Barbara’s East Beach.
Santa Barbara police officers were dispatched at about 5 a.m. to El Escorial Villas on Por La Mar Circle between East Beach and the Santa Barbara Zoo after a newspaper delivery driver reported seeing a mountain lion, according to police Lt. Josh Morton.
A similar call at the complex was investigated in the early morning hours Saturday.
Officers searched the complex, with the assistance of state Fish & Wildlife personnel and thermal-imaging equipment, but were unable to locate the animal, Morton said.
“There’s no indication that it is there now,” he told Noozhawk at about 9:45 a.m.
Residents of the complex were directed to shelter in place while the search was taking place, Morton said.
— Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton can be reached at tbolton@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.>