Although it was not as strong as expected, the storm that moved through the region Wednesday night into Thursday is providing a boost for Santa Barbara County’s water supply.
At the same time, a persistent impact of the storm is potentially dangerous and damaging high surf all along the county’s coastline.
Gibraltar Reservoir on the upper Santa Ynez River, which was only at 32% on capacity on Dec. 31, filled to capacity and began spilling overnight as expected.
As a result, greater flows are heading downstream into Lake Cachuma, a major water source for the county’s South Coast.
“Lake Cachuma only came up a couple of feet from the storm,” said Matthew Griffin, county Flood Control District engineering manager. “But now that it’s receiving direct runoff through Gibraltar, we suspect it’ll come up a little bit more. Still significantly below being full, of course.”
As of Thursday evening, Cachuma’s water level had risen more than 4 feet since early December, increasing to 34.3% of capacity from 31.1%, and adding more than 6,100 acre-feet of water, according to the county Public Works Department’s website.
Cachuma remains more than 50 feet below spill level, but likely will rise further with upcoming storms.
“Last night didn’t have as heavy rainfall as was anticipated, so it was on the lighter end of the forecast,” Griffin told Noozhawk. “There was a good amount of flow into our debris basins, no large debris.”
Joe Sirard , a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard, said the precipitation from the storm was less than expected because the weather system was oriented in such a way that upper level winds moved it away from the county more quickly than anticipated.
“Then there was additional moisture that moved in behind the front and caused additional rainfall overnight into early this morning in your area,” Sirard said. “So it’s kind of a long duration event still.”
Despite the wet and windy conditions, the latest storm caused only minor disruptions and no serious injuries. Only minor flooding and mud flows were reported.
“There were no reported power outages,” said Scott Safechuck, Public Information Officer for Santa Barbara County Fire. “There were multiple trees down and rocks and debris, causing some road closures, including Highway 154 between Highway 246 and State Route 192.”
Safechuck said the department is keeping in constant contact with the National Weather Service and fire departments from Carpinteria, Montecito, Santa Barbara City, Santa Barbara County as well as Lompoc, Santa Maria.
“We are always constantly evaluating the threat levels and risk assessment during the storm, and using it to evaluate our response levels,” he added.
Safechuck said county residents can sign up for emergency alerts through ReadySBC.org or follow local fire departments and government agencies on social media in order to stay updated on the latest information.
Evacuation orders that were issued Wednesday afternoon for communities in and around recent wildfire burn areas were allowed to lapse Thursday morning as the storm moved east.
A High Surf Advisory — calling for large breaking waves of 8-12 feet — was issued, and will be in effect until 6 p.m. Friday.
Sirard said beach-goers should use caution, as there could be waves as high as 15 feet, along with dangerous rip currents.
“Any west facing beach can have high surf across Southern California today from tonight,” he said. “So going up to the Central Coast or Ventura coast is extremely dangerous.”
Due to high waves, a warning was issued for the Santa Barbara Harbor.
In Carpinteria, railroad traffic was halted for a time after large waves and high tides swamped the train tracks with sea water.
Elsewhere, Goleta Beach County Park was shut down after large waves dumped sand, seaweed and other debris in parking lots and throughout the park.
The restaurant at Goleta Beach, which is under new ownership and being remodeled, reportedly sustained broken windows, interior flooding and other damage from the powerful waves.
As of 6 p.m. Thursday, 48-hour rainfall totals in the county included: 2.89 inches in Solvang; 2.39 inches in Goleta; 2.0 inches in Lompoc; 1.96 inches in Montecito; 1.94 inches in Santa Barbara; 1.6 inches in Santa Maria; and 1.52 inches in Carpinteria.
The wettest spot in the county was El Deseo in the mountains above Mission Canyon and Santa Barbara, with 5.71 inches.
That was followed closely by Alisal Reservoir in the Santa Ynez Valley with 5.02 inches, and Gibraltar Reservoir at 4.95 inches.
In Santa Maria, Los Flores Ranch Park Recreational Open Space was closed for public use due to unsafe conditions caused by the rain.
Winds of 10 to 15 mph were expected Thursday night in Santa Barbara, with a 40% chance of rain after 10 p.m., according to the National Weather Service.
Friday should be sunny, with a high of 64 degrees, while Saturday is expected to be cloudy with a 60% chance of rain overnight into Sunday.
Santa Maria can expect a 40% chance of rain before 11 p.m. Thursday. On Friday, Santa Maria should be sunny, with winds up to 10 mph.
Lompoc residents should be aware of a flood advisory until Friday at 1 p.m. and a high surf warning which is in place until Jan. 6 at 10 a.m.
Thursday night there will be a 30% chance of rain before 10 p.m.
Friday will be mostly sunny with winds up to 15 mph. Saturday in Lompoc can expect a 30% chance of rain and winds up to 20 mph.
In the Santa Ynez Valley, winds could reach 20 mph with a 40% chance of rain Thursday night.
Friday should be clear with winds reaching 10 mph.
On Saturday, the chance of rain is 10%, with winds as high as 15 mph.
Saturday night will see a 60% chance of rain in Santa Ynez Valley.
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» Click here for the latest Lompoc forecast.
» Click here for the latest Santa Ynez Valley forecast.
