Record rainfall continues to hit Santa Barbara County as 2026 begins, with reports of more than an inch of rain per hour in the county and flooding on Highway 101, closing the highway in both directions.
“U.S. 101 is closed in both directions near Goleta due to a series of mudslides,” Caltrans warned on social media at 10:35 a.m. Saturday. “Travelers traveling southbound on U.S. 101 will be directed to the intersection with Highway 1 north of Gaviota. Northbound travelers will be directed to Winchester. Crews are on scene. No reopening estimate.”
Flash flood warnings continue across the region, and National Weather Service officials warned that current storm conditions are expected to continue until about 2 p.m. in the Santa Barbara County towns of Isla Vista, Santa Barbara, Montecito, Summerland, Goleta and Carpinteria.
A person walks along a flooded street during a powerful long-term atmospheric river storm on February 4, 2024 in Santa Barbara, California. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
“I just received word from the scene that there are no changes to road conditions and closures,” Caltrans spokesman Kevin Drabinski told SFGATE via text message on Saturday. “We still don’t have a reopening estimate.”
In the northern part of the county, Highway 1 near Orcutt is also closed in both directions, Caltrans officials said.
“Highway 1 near Orcutt is closed in both directions due to flooding between Solomon Road and Blake Road,” Caltrans posted on social media at 10:05 a.m. Saturday. “There is no estimated time for reopening. Please remember to adjust your driving to weather conditions, slow down and maintain distance between vehicles in front of you.”
Aerial view of downtown Santa Barbara, California. (Getty Images)
Caltrans’ Drabinski confirmed there are two closures of Highway 1 in northern Santa Barbara County: “Highway 1 near the golf course near Orcutt, and Highway 1 below the railroad tracks north of Guadalupe,” he texted. “…We would normally have to wait on those two routes until the rain stops and water levels recede. Fortunately, we have good alternative routes in place to deal with the closure of both routes, so the impact on traffic is essentially minimal.”
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This article was originally published on ‘No reopening estimate’: Two major California highways closed due to flooding.
