Storm Watch: Rain, Hail, and Sinkholes, Oh My!

While heavy rains are not unfamiliar to locals these days, this past storm came with a few surprises, including hail at the Sheffield Drive undercrossing and a sinkhole on the 2400 block of Sycamore Canyon that led to a gas line break. As well as a slump in the road on Barker Pass. 

The areas most heavily impacted were east of San Ysidro Road, lower areas of Butterfly Lane, Channel Drive, Sheffield Drive, and Ortega Hill Road. From the start of the storm on Saturday night into Sunday, Montecito Fire Department had 74 calls dispatched with the South Coast Dispatch Center fielding approximately 250 calls. 

MFD Public Information Officer, Christina Atchison, commented: “We had 20 Montecito Fire personnel working and we were greatly assisted by our partners from Carpinteria-Summerland Fire, Santa Barbara City Fire and Santa Barbara County Fire. We are very grateful for their help throughout the storm event.

“We would also like to thank the Miramar for stepping up at a moment’s notice when our firefighters showed up on their doorstep with four people who had to abandon their vehicles on the 101 amid the rising floodwater. Later, we brought a family of four to the Miramar after they had to evacuate their home due to flooding. The Miramar staff immediately welcomed all of them inside, gave them towels to dry off and encouraged them to warm up by the fireplace. It allowed our firefighters to get back to answering emergency calls and gave them peace of mind knowing that those individuals had a safe place to wait out the storm.”

Larry Nobles, GM of Lucky’s, mentioned that the restaurant and street flooded mid-shift with the staff choosing to self-evacuate. Guests could not reach the valet station without treading into the mini river forming outside of the restaurant. Nobles and the staff began carrying customers, the elderly, and families out of the restaurant in their arms and with piggyback rides – now that’s service.