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T U E SDAY, JA N UA RY 10 , 2 023
Storm slams county — again
Montecito ordered to evacuate on anniversary of 2018 debris flow
Newsom requests a declaration of emergency as another round of storms hit
By DAVE MASON
(The Center Square) - On Monday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom submitted a request to the White House for a Presidential Emergency Declaration to help with storm recovery and response efforts. Since Dec. 27 the state has been repeatedly hit by atmospheric river systems which are expected to continue to Jan. 10 with impacts lasting through to Jan.19. The state has seen urban flooding and twelve fatalities as a result. Atmospheric river systems are columns of concentrated water vapor pushed along much like a river in the sky. They are a result of special combinations of temperature, pressure and wind. This transport of moisture is sometimes called the Pineapple Express because it can come from as far as Hawaii into California. At a California Office of Emergency Services news conference on Jan 8, Gov. Newsom warned “We are anticipating some very intense weather coming in.” California residents were urged to stay connected to the Office of Emergency Services (OES) for possible evacuation warnings in their area, to stay informed and be prepared. “Floods kill more individuals than any other natural disaster,” said Cal OES Director, Nancy Ward. “Water rises quickly, water cuts off evacuation routes, a car can float in twelve inches of water. So it’s really, really, extremely important that you stay vigilant, you listen to your county emergency alerts, that you heed the warnings of road closure signs, that you don’t walk/ drive in water that you can’t judge the depth of, and to stay vigilant with an emergency plan, be ready should power outages occur, which we know will happen in a significant way over these next several storms and possible compound over the storms that are coming.” “Don’t test fate,” Gov. Newsom Please see EMERGENCY on A4
By RIA ROEBUCK JOSEPH THE CENTER SQUARE CONTRIBUTOR
NEWS-PRESS MANAGING EDITOR
“Leave now.” That was the message as Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management ordered an immediate evacuation of all of Montecito on the fifth anniversary of the 2018 debris flow that cost 23 lives in the community. The county on Monday opened its evacuation center at Santa Barbara City College’s Wake Center, 300 N. Turnpike Road, Santa Barbara. The county wasn’t taking any chances as heavy rainfall caused creeks to rise, created lakes in intersections, filled reservoirs past their capacities and led to a rockslide that closed State Route 154 in both directions. As much as 10 inches of rainfall was reported in the foothills, and along the coast, three to five inches were measured, according to a map from the Santa Barbara County Flood Control District. And residents in the Cave Please see MONTECITO on A4
STEVE TONNESEN / NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS
At left, Franklin Creek rises in Carpinteria during Monday’s storm. At right, Carpinteria Creek grows in intensity during the storm.
FYI For the latest on evacuation or shelter-in-place instructions, see readysbc. org. Santa Barbara County is operating its evacuation center at the Santa Barbara City College Wake Center, 300 N. Turnpike Road, Santa Barbara. For small animal evacuation, call Santa Barbara County Animal Services at 805-681-4332. For large animal evacuation, call 805-8924484. For more information, call the Santa Barbara County Call Center at 833-688-5551 or 2-1-1. If you have an emergency, call 9-1-1.
DAVE MASON / NEWS-PRESS
Mandarin Avenue in Old Town Goleta experiences some flooding Monday morning.
Court hearing today for transient woman in robbery case By NEIL HARTSTEIN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Santa Barbara County Superior Court will stay open today despite the heavy rain and flooding associated with the major storm that hit the city Monday. As such, a preliminary hearing will be held as scheduled in Santa Barbara for the transient woman charged with stealing a cell phone from a witness to a Christmas Eve rock-throwing incident that shattered the front window of Rudy’s restaurant on upper State Street. The complaint filed against Nelly
Gackowska, 60, charges her with seconddegree robbery and grand theft from witness Rebecca Brand for allegedly taking Ms. Brand’s cellphone to stop her 9-1-1 call in progress, and to get the photos Ms. Brand allegedly took of her at the scene. Ms. Brand contends the defendant repeatedly slammed her phone into her thigh in a successful attempt to pry her phone from her hand, causing a big bruise. Deputy District Attorney Elizabeth Branch and Ms. Gackowska’s public defender met in court Monday to confirm
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the preliminary hearing was still on for today. “We just called the case and the prelim is confirmed for tomorrow at 8:30 a.m.,” the prosecutor told the News-Press on Monday. A preliminary hearing is held for a judge to determine whether there is enough evidence against the defendant to proceed to trial.
Ms. Brand told the News-Press she has been subpoenaed to testify. Ms. Gackowska has pleaded not guilty to the charges. If convicted, the maximum sentence she could receive is five years in prison, Ms. Branch said. There’s been some confusion as to whether she also will be charged for allegedly throwing the rock that broke the restaurant’s window.
Ms. Brand said she was told no charges would be filed for that, but that she spoke to a Rudy’s spokeswoman who said the eatery wants to press charges against Ms. Gackowska. “We are waiting on more information before making a filing decision on the breaking of the window,” Ms. Branch said. email: nhartsteinnewspress@gmail.com
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The complaint filed against Nelly Gackowska, 60, charges her with second-degree robbery and grand theft from witness Rebecca Brand.
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Saturday’s SUPER LOTTO: 4-6-11-31-46 Mega: 22
Monday’s DAILY 4: 0-3-1-9
Friday’s MEGA MILLIONS: 3-20-46-59-63 Mega: 13
Monday’s FANTASY 5: 13-17-21-24-28
Monday’s DAILY DERBY: 04-02-06 Time: 1:47.86
Monday’s POWERBALL: 18-43-48-60-69 Meganumber: 14
Monday’s DAILY 3: 0-5-8 / Midday 1-8-2