Update March 14, 2023 8:37 am
3/14/23 Board of Trustees Meeting to be Virtual
This is an update to our closures of schools and the District Office on March 14, 2023. The Board of Trustees meeting will now be held virtually. More information on the meeting can be found here.
You can join the webinar by clicking here or calling at 1-669-900-6833 or 1-669-444-9171. The webinar ID is 972 7421 4665.
You can also join the meeting on YouTube.
Members of the public wishing to speak must “raise their hand” in the Zoom Webinar platform by selecting the virtual hand icon during the presentation of that item and may do so at any time while public comment remains open for the item. When persons are called on to speak, their microphone will be activated by District staff, and the speaker will be notified that they can now unmute themselves to begin speaking. The speaker must then unmute themselves by selecting the ‘mute/unmute’ icon. Please state your full name at the beginning of your comment.
If joining by phone, raise your hand by dialing *9. When persons are called on to speak, their microphone will be activated by District staff, and the speaker will be notified that they can now unmute themselves to begin speaking. The speaker will then need to unmute themselves by dialing *6. Please state your name at the beginning of your comment.
Update March 13, 2023 7:06 pm
Santa Barbara Unified Families, Faculty, and Staff,
Out of an abundance of caution, Schools and the District Office will be closed on Tuesday, March 14, due to yet another storm moving into our area overnight that is expected to cause significant impacts on our community. The decision was made in consultation with Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown, other South County superintendents, and the City of Santa Barbara‘s Office of Emergency Management. Factors being considered include the rate of rain that will be falling when students, faculty, and staff travel to and from school.
The forecast shows we will get 2 to 5 inches of rain along the coast and 4 to 8 inches of rain in the mountains. Up to an inch of rain an hour will fall between 12 p.m. and 6 p.m. Forecasters are comparing this to the storm on January 9th of this year that forced our last shutdown. They expect this to cause flooding along with the potential of highway and roadway closures.
The storm will also cause evacuation advisories in some parts of the Thomas, Alisal, and Cave Fire burn scars. A flood watch will be in effect for Santa Barbara County from Tuesday morning through Wednesday morning.
The rain is predicted to start Tuesday morning and remain consistent through Wednesday morning. The heavy rain will begin around 6 a.m. The most intense part of the storm will happen from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can find the latest information from Santa Barbara County on the storm here.
If you live in a flood-prone area and feel unsafe or if the storm rapidly intensifies, residents are encouraged to make plans to evacuate ahead of the storm voluntarily.
As always, do not attempt to drive at night or while it is raining, as roads may be damaged, and your car may be swept away by moving water or debris.
Public safety officials are closely monitoring the incoming storm to assess whether any emergency protective actions need to be taken. The best and fastest way to stay up-to-date on this storm is by subscribing to alerts at readysbc.org or monitoring updates on your local broadcast tv, radio, and online news publications.
You can get emergency alerts sent straight to your phone by signing up at: https://www.readysbc.org/
- If you have questions about emergency orders and warnings, contact the county Call Center at 833-688-5551.
- Always follow the directions of local authorities – if you’re told to evacuate, do so.
- Prepare for power outages by keeping cell phones, etc. charged.
- Be aware that travel routes could be impacted by the storm. Check for road closure updates: https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/
- For the latest weather outlook, please visit: https://www.weather.gov/lox/
Please know we do not make this decision lightly. We plan to reopen Wednesday but will communicate with you further Tuesday.
