Members of the county’s Search and Rescue (SBCSAR) team rescued six Santa Barbara residents — including four children — in two separate incidents Sunday evening.
The first occurred when a motorcyclist riding near Divide Peak lost his bike over the side of a cliff on a hairpin turn. Unable to reach the motorcycle, he called 911 for help. Six SBCSAR members responded, using off-road vehicles to access the location 12 miles from a paved road. They recovered the bike and helped the man back to his car on East Camino Cielo Road.
At around the same time, the SBCSAR team received a call of five lost hikers, including four children (ages 14, 10, 6, and 5) on the Romero Canyon Trail. Two of the SBCSAR members on the motorcycle call, accompanied by four more rescuers, located the group and helped them hike out of the area. The hikers were then transported back to their vehicle at the Romero Canyon trailhead.
The SBCSAR team — which consists of 33 members, including 25 EMTs — is an all-volunteer unit of the Sheriff’s Office. They’re on call 24/7.