Less than two months after storm-driven mudslides pummeled the fire-ravaged celebrity enclave of Montecito, the city again is under a mandatory-evactuation order. A 6 PM deadline to get out looms as a flash-flood warning is in effect for the tony burg with a winter storm bearing down.
Although officials peg the potential for mudslides as low to moderate, the evacuation also affect nearby Santa Barbara, Goleta, Carpenteria and Summerland. The Santa Barbara office of the California Highway Patrol said the 101 Freeway might be shut down at about 2 AM overnight if they deem it necessary. Here is a map of the affected areas from ReadySBC.org:
The Thomas Fire scorched the region in mid-December en route to becoming the biggest wildfire in California history. Concentrated near Montecito and Santa Barbara, it forced more than 100,000 people to evacuate including a number of celebrities. About three weeks later, the area was hit by severe storms that triggered deadly mudslides. Local homeowner Oprah Winfrey shared video of the aftermath on social media, saying among other things: “That’s my neighbor’s house, devastated. And debris is everywhere.” Her home was not damaged, though.
Among other notables who have homes in the area are Ellen DeGeneres, Drew Barrymore, Jeff Bridges, Rob Lowe, Malcolm McDowell, Al Gore, Megyn Price, Eric Schmidt, Jane Seymour and Patrick Stewart. Deadline will keep an eye on social media to see who weighs in about the evacuations and/or coming storm. In the meantime, here is Montecito local Kathy Ireland tweeting a photo of how she is spending the day:
Here is the what the Los Angeles office of the National Weather Bureau sees it:
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