Evacuation Warning Issued In Santa Cruz Co. As Huge Storm Looms

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CA — A powerful storm on the horizon for the Central Coast this Sunday prompted officials to issue an evacuation warning in Santa Cruz County.

The warning came down this weekend for areas in and near the CZU Fire burn scar, the County of Santa Cruz said in a statement. Officials warned residents that the Sundays storm could send debris flying — mud, rocks, trees and sometimes cars or homes.

"The Storm Door is officially open," the National Weather Service said Monday.

County officials warned that debris could "move quickly and are often deadly to those in their path."

Residents in the area near the CZU burn zone were urged to seek shelter with friends and families ahead of the storm, which was expected to begin Sunday. The CZU Lightning Complex fire charred 86,509 acres last year throughout San Mateo and Santa Cruz Counties, leaving a massive burn scar.

READ MORE: 'The Storm Door Is Officially Open' In Santa Cruz, Officials Say

An early season storm was expected to hit Sunday for the San Francisco Bay Area and Central Coast, prompting officials to issue a wind advisory and a high surf warning, the National Weather Service reported.

The Emergency Operations Center is monitoring a storm predicted to impact Northern California later this week, including rainfall beginning Sunday that may meet debris flow thresholds for the #CZUFire burn scar. #KnowYourZone by looking up your address at https://t.co/s5GvnC2XXf. pic.twitter.com/ShA4Wk1wQ2
— Santa Cruz County (@sccounty) October 22, 2021

The arriving storm systems were expected result in strong gusts and coastal hazards Sunday and into early next week, weather service officials said.

On Friday, weather officials also issued a Flash Flood Watch for the Santa Cruz Mountains.

"A very strong atmospheric river and storm system will move through the
region late this weekend and early next week," National Weather Service officials wrote in a warning notice.

On Sunday, a rainfall was expected to amount between a quarter and a half inch, with precipitation becoming heavier in the evening, officials said.

The following zones received the evacuation warning:

• BOU-E005
• BOU-E006-B
• BOU-E007-B
• BOU-E008-B
• BOU-E010
• BOU-E011-B
• BOU-E012-B
• BOU-E012-C
• BOU-E020
• BOU-E030
• BOU-E031-A
• BOU-E036A
• BOU-E041-A
• BOU-E042-A
• BEN-E002-C
• BEN-E003-B
• CRZ-E001-C
• CRZ-E008-B
• CRZ-E010-C
• CRZ-E017-C
• FEL-E003-B

Residents can look up their address to see if they are within one of these zones here.