Evacuation Warnings: 'Prepare Now,' Santa Cruz Co. Officials Say

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CA — Residents in parts of the San Lorenzo Valley and Santa Cruz County's north coast were placed under an evacuation warning Sunday evening, with high winds and heavy rain forecast in the days to come.

Residents of affected areas should have an emergency "go" bag packed and be prepared to leave immediately with a planned evacuation route, Cal Fire and county emergency officials said Sunday night in a news release. Officials were concerned about dangerous weather late Tuesday and early Wednesday.

Note: Evacuation zones listed at the end of this article.

pic.twitter.com/dD4pPseeY3
— Santa Cruz County (@sccounty) January 25, 2021

Eight to 12 inches of rain is possible in the Santa Cruz Mountains, officials said, citing the National Weather Service forecast. Debris flow is possible.

"Prepare now," the county said on Twitter.

Strong winds and rain will impact our region beginning early this week. Rainfall amounts may exceed thresholds for debris flow evacuations near the #CZULightningComplex burn scar, and rain will be preceded by high winds likely to impact power and road access. Prepare now.
— Santa Cruz County (@sccounty) January 24, 2021

County officials suggest people at high risk of debris flow make arrangements to stay elsewhere in advance of the storm. The public is urged to check their evacuation zones here and sign up for emergency alerts here.

The evacuation warning comes less than a week after Santa Cruz Mountains evacuees fled their homes for the second time in recent months as wildfires tore through Santa Cruz County. Eighteen wildfires were reported in an 18-hour time span across the region, according to the Cal Fire San Mateo-Santa Cruz Unit. Near hurricane force winds were recorded in the Santa Cruz Mountains last week.

Most of those fires occurred in the area of the CZU August Lightning Complex Fires burn scar, left just months ago. Those fires were among the most destructive in California history, killing one person, scorching than 85,500 acres and destroying nearly 1,500 buildings across San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties, though mountain communities in Santa Cruz County sustained most of the damage.

Since the CZU August Lightning Complex Fires, officials have worried about the possibility of debris flow, which can cause more injuries than the preceding wildfire event.

According to emergency officials, the following evacuation zones are under an evacuation warning as of 9:15 p.m. Sunday:

• (Zones: Ben Lomond Fire District BEN-E001B, BEN-E001C, BEN-E001D, BEN-E002A, BEN-E002D, BEN-E004B, BEN-E004C)
• (Zones: Boulder Creek Fire District BOU-E001, BOU-E010A, BOU-E021, BOU-E031, BOU- E036B, BOU-E037, BOU-E038, BOU-E021A, BOU-E020, BOU-E017, BOU-E016, BOU-E010, BOU-E006, BOU-E001A, BOU-E002, BOU-E033A, BOU-E038A, BOU-E031B, BOU-E030, BOU-E018A, BOU-E014, BOU-E009, BOU-E003, BOU-E001B, BOU-E015A, BOU-E039A, BOU-E040A)
• Davenport (Zone: CRZ-E006B)
• (Zones: Felton Fire District FEL-E002A, FEL-E002B, FEL-E003B, FEL-E003C, FEL-E004A, FEL-E005A)
• (Zones: Santa Cruz County Fire Dept. CRZ-E001B, CRZ-E001D, CRZ-E002B, CRZ-E003B, CRZ-E003D, CRZ-E006C, CRZ-E007A, CRZ-E017A, CRZ-E017C)