page_title: 2018 Southern California mudflows
section_title: Santa Barbara County
hierarchical_section_title: 2018 Southern California mudflows / Landslides / Santa Barbara County
caption_attribution_description: English: Aerial: San Ysidro Ranch and Casa de Maria damage taken January 11, 2018 of the catastrophic debris flow from heavy rains after the Thomas Fire. This is one of hundreds of aerial photos I took of this regional disaster, both the fire and debris flow. For a comparison of this area before the disaster(s), you may find an archived satellite photo of these coordinates: 34.444964, -119.622550
context_page_description: A series of mudflows occurred in Southern California in early January 2018, particularly affecting areas northwest of Los Angeles in Santa Barbara County. The incident was responsible for 23 deaths, although the bodies of two victims were not found. Approximately 163 people were hospitalized with various injuries, including four in critical condition. The disaster occurred one month after a series of major wildfires. The conflagrations devastated steep slopes, which caused loss of vegetation and destabilization of the soil and greatly facilitated subsequent mudflows. The mudflows caused at least $177 million in property damage, and cost at least $7 million in emergency responses and another $43 million to clean up.
context_section_description: Early on the morning of January 9, mudflows struck Montecito, which had been affected by the Thomas Fire, and other areas of Santa Barbara County. An estimated 0.5 inches (13 mm) of rain fell within a five-minute period at approximately 3:30 a.m., causing mud and boulders from the Santa Ynez Mountains to flow down creeks and valleys into Montecito. The debris flows were up to 15 feet (5 m) in height of mud, boulders and tree branches, moving at estimated speeds of up to 20 miles per hour (30 km/h) into the lower areas of Montecito. Over 20,000 people lost power, and a 30-mile (50 km) section of U.S. Route 101 (US 101) from Santa Barbara to Ventura was shut down as sections filled with two feet (60 cm) of mud and debris, some of which also reached beaches 2.25 miles (3.6 km) from the mountains. Following the closure, access to Santa Barbara from the Los Angeles area was limited to a 260-mile (420 km) detour around the Los Padres National Forest or through the use of private ferries to Ventura. On January 11, Amtrak train service was restored to Santa Barbara and US 101 was partially reopened as far west as Carpinteria. The highway was fully reopened on January 21, after Caltrans crews cleared 12 feet (3.7 m) of mud from the roadway.
  Approximately 21,000 residents of Santa Barbara and Ventura counties in high elevation zones affected by the Thomas Fire were evacuated, but low-lying areas were outside of the mandatory evacuation area. Warning messages sent by the National Weather Service and the county government arrived too late to prompt Montecito residents to seek safe areas. Many residents in the mandatory evacuation zone, and most residents in the voluntary evacuation area, ignored warnings and stayed in their homes, probably a result of "evacuation fatigue" left over from the recent wildfires. The mandatory evacuation zone was expanded to cover a majority of Montecito's estimated 10,000 residents two days later (January 11) due to disruptions in electricity, gas, water, sewage and Internet, and due to emergency road works and ongoing search and rescue operations.
  As of January 21, the mudflows caused at least 21 confirmed deaths, mostly in the Montecito area, and an additional two people were reported as missing in Montecito. Over 150 people were hospitalized with various injuries, including four in critical condition. The mudflows destroyed over 100 homes and damaged an additional 300. Writer T.C. Boyle, whose home was proximate to both the fire and mudslides, documented the collective trauma in The New Yorker magazine.
  Cleanup efforts began a week after the initial mudflows, with debris being sent to the Ventura County Fairgrounds for sorting and the Calabasas Landfill for disposal.
caption: San Ysidro Ck. after debris flow
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