Mandatory Evacuation Now Includes Paradise
Current State of Evacuations for Whittier Fire
The Cachuma side of Whittier Fire is now under a mandatory evacuation order. With the fire due to become more frisky, residents of Paradise Road from State Route 154 to the first river crossing should leave immediately. This adds to the order earlier this afternoon from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office that areas between Winchester Canyon Road and El Capitan Ranch Road — between Calle Real and West Camino Cielo — evacuate. (The order excludes the neighborhoods of Wagon Wheel, Winchester Commons, and Langlo Ranch Road.)
This morning’s evacuation order for areas close to Goleta continues to include Farren Road and Las Varas Canyon Road.
Up at the Cavaletto Ranch, a firebreak was completed earlier in the day to help protect the orchards and homes south of there. Several of the ranches in the area have dozered firebreaks, as has one of the ranch-hands up at the Gun Club to help protect the Kinevan area.
From earlier evac orders, West Camino Cielo from the 154 to Winchester Gun Club remains on mandatory status, as do Kinevan Road, Rosario Park Road, and Stagecoach Road.
Highway 154 is closed from Foothill/Cathedral Oaks to Armour Ranch Road near Santa Ynez. The 101 highway is open currently, though traffic is extremely slow. That’s in part due to the closure of the 154, and also because people are reportedly stopping to take photographs of the fire.
San Marcos High School (4750 Hollister Avenue) is the designated evacuation center on the south coast, and small pets are being accepted. Earl Warren Showgrounds is taking large animals, but people are advised to first call Animal Services at (805) 681-4332 before bringing their animals to Earl Warren. On the Santa Ynez side, Santa Ynez Elementary is apparently on stand-by status.
If a potential for evacuation concerns residents, fire officials suggest getting ready now or going ahead and leaving. Plans for evacuation include designating a safe meeting spot for family members, identifying more than one escape route from home, and asking an out-of-town relative or friend to be a contact for the family group should local phone lines become overwhelmed. Santa Barbara County Fire’s “Ready Set Go” program provides more information.
