Despite a couple hours of rain over Easter Weekend, Santa Barbra County remains dangerously below annual rainfall totals. According to the most recent data, not only is the county at 49 percent of its average annual rainfall but Gibraltar Reservoir is also on pace for its lowest levels since records began nearly 100 years ago. Lake Cachuma is more than 25 feet below spillway levels. This week’s rain, which rolled in just before sunrise on Easter Sunday, brought with it just shy of half an inch of rain for downtown Santa Barbara and Goleta and roughly a quarter inch for much of the Santa Ynez Valley and the Gaviota region. All told, this season, 8.63 inches of total rain have fallen in Santa Barbara proper while Lake Cachuma has had 7.97 inches.
