SANTA BARBARA, Ca. The Santa Barbara County Fire Department (SBCFD), in conjunction with all other local fire jurisdictions, will declare the beginning of the 2021 High Fire Season for all areas of Santa Barbara County on May 3, 2021.

COVID-19: 4/21/21  Santa Barbara County Fire Department continues to work with local emergency response and county health agencies to assess and manage community support as required by the current pandemic. For more information, click below to access the County of Santa Barbara Public Health Information Portal.

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SANTA BARBARA, Ca – On February 1st 2021 , the Santa Barbara County Fire Department transitioned from a High Fire Season to a Winter Preparedness Level.

The Santa Barbara County Fire Department and City of Goleta are
pleased to announce the recent installation and implementation of a new GPS-based traffic control system that will improve response times and increase public safety.

On Monday, December 7th, through Wednesday, December 9th, the Santa Barbara County Fire Department will be conducting a state-sanctioned vegetation management burn on the Spaulding Ranch in the area between Tims Road and Midland School in the Santa Ynez Valley.

The cause of the Drum Fire that occurred on June 14, 2020 was determined to be a Pacific Gas and Electric electrical conductor (Power line) that failed and arced to the ground.

The Santa Barbara County Fire Department was awarded a $74,000.00 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) for the purchase of new battery powered extrication equipment that will be used to rescue crash victims. Known as the “Jaws of Life,” first responders use these rescue tools to break apart a wrecked vehicle with victims trapped inside.

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff-Fire Air Support Unit (ASU) is pleased to announce the arrival of Copter 964, a 2004 Sikorsky HH-60L “Firehawk” helicopter. Since its purchase in 2019, the Firehawk has been stationed in Alabama, where it has undergone a retrofit with all-new state-of-the-art avionics, paint, and a new rescue hoist.

Santa Barbara County Fire Department Investigators determined the Hollister Fire which started on Thursday, May 7th 2020, at 0213, was caused by Southern California Edison electrical conductors (power lines).

The XSB Urban Search and Rescue Regional Task Force (RTF-12), composed of firefighters from the Santa Barbara County operational area, have just returned from deployment to the North Complex Fire in Northern California. RTF-12 was assigned to search the remnants of homes destroyed by the fire for human remains.