Disaster Data / States / California / Santa Barbara County
CountySanta Barbara County recorded 29 federal disaster and emergency declarations since FY2000 (through FY2025): 14 major disasters, 7 emergencies, and 8 fire-management declarations. Its most common hazard is fire.
Highlighted: Santa Barbara County, CA
Totals: FY2000–FY2025 · Page last rebuilt Sep 12, 2026 · the current in-progress fiscal year is not included in totals
The federal disaster record for Santa Barbara County runs between 2004 and 2024, covering 29 declarations in all. Its most recent major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides in 2024. The hazards behind these declarations were most often fire, flood, and severe storm. Since 2000, FEMA has obligated about $129.4 million in Public Assistance funding to the jurisdiction, most of it for emergency protective measures.
Historical declarations show what has happened here. These national datasets add context about underlying natural-hazard risk and community vulnerability.
Approximately 86.7% of U.S. counties have an equal or lower overall SVI ranking.
Higher percentiles indicate greater relative social vulnerability within the CDC SVI framework. CDC SVI documentation
The NRI combines expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience to describe relative natural-hazard risk. FEMA NRI documentation
Federal share obligated to this jurisdiction under FEMA Public Assistance since 2000, grouped by damage category. Figures are rounded to the nearest dollar and reflect obligations, which may change as projects close out.
| Category | Projects | Federal share obligated |
|---|---|---|
| Emergency protective measures(B) | 241 | $48,141,950 |
| Debris removal(A) | 140 | $29,084,859 |
| Utilities(F) | 79 | $18,816,915 |
| Roads and bridges(C) | 146 | $17,147,664 |
| Water control facilities(D) | 56 | $7,673,991 |
| Parks and recreation(G) | 63 | $4,176,040 |
| Management costs(Z) | 55 | $3,344,168 |
| Buildings and equipment(E) | 75 | $979,961 |
| All categories | 855 | $129,365,548 |
For each disaster, the wait from the declaration to the first federal obligation (amber), then the federal share obligating after that (teal), on a shared 9-year scale. Typical wait to the first obligation here: about 172 days. An obligation is the federal share committed to the recipient state, not funds disbursed to the locality, which comes later and is not shown.
FEMA Individual Assistance to households in this jurisdiction, combined across the Housing Assistance owner and renter programs. Valid registrations are households that applied within a designated Individual Assistance area; approved counts and dollars are the households FEMA found eligible under the Individuals and Households Program. Figures are self-reported and drawn from NEMIS through OpenFEMA, not audited, and Individual Assistance exists only for disasters where it was designated, so many jurisdictions show none.
| Assistance type | Approved amount |
|---|---|
| Repair and replacement | $4,144,020 |
| Rental assistance | $2,544,351 |
| Other needs | $2,799,287 |
Federal Hazard Mitigation Assistance obligated to this jurisdiction to reduce future disaster losses, across the FEMA mitigation programs. This is the record of past mitigation investment a local hazard mitigation plan documents. Figures are federal share obligated, reported through OpenFEMA and not audited, and are separate from the Public Assistance funding above.
| Program | Projects | Federal share obligated |
|---|---|---|
| Hazard Mitigation Grant Program(HMGP) | 38 | $38,134,419 |
| Legislative Pre-Disaster Mitigation(LPDM) | 1 | $1,384,040 |
| Pre-Disaster Mitigation(PDM) | 3 | $272,082 |
Emergency declarations issued by the governor of this state, which are separate from and usually precede a federal declaration. A declaration is listed here when NOAA Storm Events recorded reports of the matched hazard in this jurisdiction while the order was in effect. That is evidence of local impact during a declared state emergency. It is not a statement that the governor named this jurisdiction in the order, since most state declarations apply statewide and name no localities at all. Hazard categories come from the order text. Damage figures are NOAA storm report estimates for this jurisdiction only, not the cost of the declaration.
Archive coverage for California: 2019-present current Governor publication archive; 2000-2018 not exposed
| Signed | Order | Declaration | Hazards reported here | Reported damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 4, 2024 | Proclamation 79675 | Governor Newsom Proclaims State of Emergency in Southern California As Powerful Storm Makes Landfall | Flash Flood, Thunderstorm Wind | Not reported |
| Mar 8, 2023 | Proclamation 76379 | Governor Newsom Proclaims Storm State of Emergency Supporting 21 Additional Counties | Flash Flood | Not reported |
Source: state executive order archives collected by DisasterData Plus, joined to NOAA Storm Events. See the Plus overview for per-state coverage and method.
Every local hazard mitigation plan must document previous occurrences of each hazard. Here is that record for Santa Barbara County, sourced to OpenFEMA and refreshed weekly. Copy it straight into your plan.
| Hazard | Date | FEMA declaration | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Severe Storm | Apr 13, 2024 | DR-4769-CA | DR |
| Severe Storm | Apr 3, 2023 | DR-4699-CA | DR |
| Flood | Mar 10, 2023 | EM-3592-CA | EM |
| Flood | Jan 14, 2023 | DR-4683-CA | DR |
| Flood | Jan 9, 2023 | EM-3591-CA | EM |
| Fire | Oct 13, 2021 | FM-5419-CA | FM |
| Biological | Mar 22, 2020 | DR-4482-CA | DR |
| Biological | Mar 13, 2020 | EM-3428-CA | EM |
| Fire | Nov 26, 2019 | FM-5303-CA | FM |
| Severe Storm | May 1, 2019 | DR-4431-CA | DR |
| Fire | Jul 7, 2018 | FM-5252-CA | FM |
| Fire | Jan 2, 2018 | DR-4353-CA | DR |
| Fire | Dec 8, 2017 | EM-3396-CA | EM |
| Fire | Dec 5, 2017 | FM-5224-CA | FM |
| Flood | Apr 1, 2017 | DR-4308-CA | DR |
| Flood | Mar 16, 2017 | DR-4305-CA | DR |
| Flood | Jan 26, 2011 | DR-1952-CA | DR |
| Fire | May 6, 2009 | FM-2817-CA | FM |
| Fire | Nov 18, 2008 | DR-1810-CA | DR |
| Fire | Nov 14, 2008 | FM-2790-CA | FM |
| Fire | Jul 4, 2008 | FM-2780-CA | FM |
| Fire | Jun 28, 2008 | EM-3287-CA | EM |
| Fire | Oct 24, 2007 | DR-1731-CA | DR |
| Fire | Oct 23, 2007 | EM-3279-CA | EM |
| Freezing | Mar 13, 2007 | DR-1689-CA | DR |
| Hurricane | Sep 13, 2005 | EM-3248-CA | EM |
| Severe Storm | Feb 4, 2005 | DR-1577-CA | DR |
| Fire | Jun 5, 2004 | FM-2519-CA | FM |
| Earthquake | Jan 13, 2004 | DR-1505-CA | DR |
DR = Major disaster (Stafford Act) · EM = Emergency declaration · FM = Fire management assistance
Showing 29 declarations
| Date | Number | Type | Hazard | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 13, 2024 | DR-4769-CA | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides |
| Apr 3, 2023 | DR-4699-CA | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides |
| Mar 10, 2023 | EM-3592-CA | EM | Flood | Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides |
| Jan 14, 2023 | DR-4683-CA | DR | Flood | Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides |
| Jan 9, 2023 | EM-3591-CA | EM | Flood | Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides |
| Oct 13, 2021 | FM-5419-CA | FM | Fire | Alisal Fire |
| Mar 22, 2020 | DR-4482-CA | DR | Biological | Covid-19 Pandemic |
| Mar 13, 2020 | EM-3428-CA | EM | Biological | Covid-19 |
| Nov 26, 2019 | FM-5303-CA | FM | Fire | Cave Fire |
| May 1, 2019 | DR-4431-CA | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides |
| Jul 7, 2018 | FM-5252-CA | FM | Fire | Holiday Fire |
| Jan 2, 2018 | DR-4353-CA | DR | Fire | Wildfires, Flooding, Mudflows, And Debris Flows |
| Dec 8, 2017 | EM-3396-CA | EM | Fire | Wildfires |
| Dec 5, 2017 | FM-5224-CA | FM | Fire | Thomas Fire |
| Apr 1, 2017 | DR-4308-CA | DR | Flood | Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides |
| Mar 16, 2017 | DR-4305-CA | DR | Flood | Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides |
| Jan 26, 2011 | DR-1952-CA | DR | Flood | Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Debris And Mud Flows |
| May 6, 2009 | FM-2817-CA | FM | Fire | Jesusita Fire |
| Nov 18, 2008 | DR-1810-CA | DR | Fire | Wildfires |
| Nov 14, 2008 | FM-2790-CA | FM | Fire | Tea Fire |
| Jul 4, 2008 | FM-2780-CA | FM | Fire | Gap Fire |
| Jun 28, 2008 | EM-3287-CA | EM | Fire | Wildfires |
| Oct 24, 2007 | DR-1731-CA | DR | Fire | Wildfires, Flooding, Mud Flows, And Debris Flows |
| Oct 23, 2007 | EM-3279-CA | EM | Fire | Wildfires |
| Mar 13, 2007 | DR-1689-CA | DR | Freezing | Severe Freeze |
| Sep 13, 2005 | EM-3248-CA | EM | Hurricane | Hurricane Katrina Evacuation |
| Feb 4, 2005 | DR-1577-CA | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Flooding, Debris Flows, And Mudslides |
| Jun 5, 2004 | FM-2519-CA | FM | Fire | Ca-Gaviota Fire-06-05-2004 |
| Jan 13, 2004 | DR-1505-CA | DR | Earthquake | Earthquake |
Drawn from FEMA's OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, rebuilt each week. A declaration is counted here once for each designated area it names, so a single disaster covering many localities is counted in each one. For that reason these jurisdiction counts do not sum to California's statewide total. This page counts declarations that named this jurisdiction as a designated area. Totals cover complete fiscal years (Oct 1 to Sep 30); the in-progress year may appear in the most-recent list but is not counted in the totals. Uses OpenFEMA data but is not endorsed by or affiliated with FEMA.
Choose a citation style, then copy the formatted citation. This profile is derived from FEMA OpenFEMA data and is updated as the underlying Disaster Data build is refreshed.