Santa Barbara County South Coast storm history

The Thomas Fire ignited in early December in the coastal valleys of Ventura county, near Thomas Aquinas College. At the time of ignition, fuel conditions were at record dry levels for early December. The combination of gusty Santa Ana winds and the dry fuel conditions allowed the…

The Jesusita Wildfire burned 8,733 acres of land in the hills above the city of Santa Barbara. The fire was driven by a combination of a large dead fuel bed and gusty Sundowner winds. Automated sensors in the vicinity of the fire reported northerly wind gusts in excess of 60 MPH …

Strong and gusty Sundowner winds impacted the area between Gaviota and Refugio. The local mesonet observations indicated very strong sustained winds including Gaviota (45-52 MPH) and Refugio (40-42 MPH).

Strong and gusty Sundowner winds impacted the area between Gaviota and Refugio. Some wind reports from the local mesonet include: Gaviota (gust 60 MPH) and Refugio (gust 59 MPH).

Strong and gusty Sundowner winds impacted the Santa Ynez Mountains in southern Santa Barbara county. Some peak wind reports from the local mesonet inlcude: Montecito Hills (gust 68 MPH), Gaviota (gust 65 MPH) and Refugio (gust 58 MPH).

Strong and gusty northerly winds impacted the South Coast of Santa Barbara county. Some peak wind reports from the local RAWS network include: Montecito (gust 81 MPH) and Carpinteria (gust 59 MPH).

Strong and gusty northerly winds impacted the foothill areas of the South Coast of Santa Barbara county. Wind gusts near 60 MPH were observed with the Montecito Hills RAWS reporting a peak gust of 58 MPH.

Strong and gusty Sundowner winds impacted the South Coast of Santa Barbara county. In the foothills, wind gusts in excess of 60 MPH were reported with the RAWS sensor at Montecito reporting gusts up to 63 MPH.

Strong and gusty northerly winds impacted the Santa Ynez Mountains as well as the South Coast of Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported wind gusts up to 81 MPH.

The RAWS sensor at Gaviota reported north winds gusting between 61 and 67 MPH.

The RAWS sensor at Refugio reported northerly winds gusting to 58 MPH.

The Whittier Fire burned 18,470 acres in southern Santa Barbara county. The fire destroyed 16 homes and damaged one other.

Strong northerly winds developed across the south coast of Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported northerly wind gusts to 64 MPH.

The Montecito RAWS sensor reported northerly wind gusts between 59 and 62 MPH.

The Montecito RAWS sensor reported northerly wind gusts up to 75 MPH.

Strong northerly winds developed across southern Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported a wind gust of 60 MPH while the sensor at Las Flores Canyon reported sustained winds of 43 MPH.

The RAWS sensor at Montecito Hills reported northerly winds, gusting between 60 and 65 MPH.

Strong north winds developed across southern Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported wind gusts between 62 and 65 MPH.

Strong northerly winds developed across the south coast of Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported wind gusts between 60 and 80 MPH.

A large long-period west swell generated high surf along the coast of southern Santa Barbara county. A large wave crashed through the window of Moby Dick restaurant in Stearns Wharf. In addition, 50 feet of the Gaviota Pier was destroyed by large surf and an employee of a restaur…

Strong northerly winds developed through the Santa Ynez mountains in southern Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported northerly wind gusts as high as 60 MPH.

Strong northerly winds developed across southern Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported sustained winds between 40 and 51 MPH with gusts between 59 and 66 MPH.

Strong northerly winds developed below the Santa Ynez Mountains in southern Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Las Flores Canyon reported several hours of sustained winds between 40 and 52 MPH.

The RAWS sensor at Montecito Hills reported northerly wind gusts to 64 MPH.

Strong northerly winds were reported across southern Santa Barbara county. The sensor at Gaviota reported sustained winds between 45 and 49 MPH. The sensor at Las Flores Canyon reported sustained winds of 41 MPH.

The RAWS sensor at Las Flores Canyon reported north winds with a sustained speed of 40 MPH.

Strong southerly winds developed across the south coast of Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Las Flores Canyon reported sustained winds of 41 MPH.

Strong northerly winds developed across southern sections of Santa Barbara county through the Santa Ynez Mountains. An automated sensor at Las Flores Canyon reported an extended period of sustained northerly winds between 41 and 46 MPH.

Tsunami waves of around 3 feet were reported by tide gauges across the Santa Barbara Channel. At Santa Barbara Pier, significant beach erosion was reported along with displacement of buoys. The tsunami surge lasted in excess of 20 hours.

The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported north winds with sustained speeds between 40 and 49 MPH with gusts to 63 MPH.

The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported sustained north winds of 40 MPH with gusts to 69 MPH.

Strong and gusty northerly winds affected the foothill areas south of the Santa Ynez range in southern Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported sustained winds between 40 and 55 MPH with gusts as high as 72 MPH.

The Tea Fire burned 1,940 acres of land in the foothills of the Santa Ynez mountains near the community of Montecito. The fire ignited when strong north winds, gusting to 72 mph, blew some embers from a bonfire started by several individuals. The winds spread the fire very quickl…

Gusty north winds affected the foothill areas south of the Santa Ynez Mountains. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported north winds gusting to 72 MPH.

The Monecito RAWS sensor reported strong northerly wind gusts around 65 mph on Christmas Eve.

The Montecito Hills RAWS sensor reported north winds gusting to 67 mph.

The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported high winds across southern Santa Barbara county. Sustained winds between 30 and 45 MPH with gusts to 73 MPH were reported. The winds knocked down a tree on the University of California Santa Barbara campus.

The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported strong north winds that gusted to 65 MPH.

Widespread freezing conditions were reported across agricultural areas of southern Santa Barbara county.

Widespread freezing conditions were reported across agricultural areas of Santa Barbara county. Total crop damages in Santa Barbara county were estimated to be around $20 million.

The Gaviota Fire Department reported winds gusts to 65 MPH. These strong winds affected a local campground, injuring a camper when a tree fell on her tent.