High winds blew through Santa Barbara County early this week. People saw bursts of downpour and strikes of lightning that were followed by rumbling thunder. On Monday, a eucalyptus tree toppled across southbound Highway 101 in Goleta, closing it for several hours. Early Tuesday morning, Santa Ynez Valley residents received a National Weather Service warning of tornado risk. ⁠ ⁠ On Wednesday morning, remnants of the storm were apparent on roads and in yards. The City of Santa Barbara’s police dep

🌎 NOTABLE EARTHQUAKE – SANTA BARBARA CHANNEL A magnitude 3.2 quake struck 5 km south of Santa Barbara Island, California. No damage and no tsunami threat, but it’s another sign the Santa Barbara Channel is awake and moving beneath the waves. Even small offshore quakes can signal deeper pressure shifts along the region’s active faults. #Earthquake #SantaBarbara #California #USGS #SeismicActivity #Geology | Above The Norm News

Santa Barbara police are urging residents to remain vigilant after multiple mountain lion sightings were reported over the weekend in neighborhoods near Oak Park and Mission Creek — including one caught on a home security camera in the Samarkand area in broad daylight.⁠ ⁠ According to a media release issued Monday, Santa Barbara Animal Control was notified on February 2 of “multiple sightings over the weekend of a mountain lion in the Oak Park and Mission Creek areas.” The sightings occurred dur