SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The Santa Cruz County Emergency Operations Center is requesting that all tourists and visitors occupying local overnight accommodations such as hotels, motels and vacation rentals leave immediately to free up shelter capacity.
Local shelters are near capacity. The Emergency Operations Center is working with local agencies including cities, colleges and universities, school districts and others to increase capacity. But “the scale of existing and anticipated evacuation orders is unprecedented and the need to safely house evacuees is critical,” County spokesman Jason Hoppin said.
Temporary shelters have been set up across the region to house evacuees. This includes one at Half Moon Bay High School, one at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium and one at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds in Watsonville.
The County of Santa Cruz on Thursday also established safe parking zones at Cabrillo College and Santa Cruz Bible Church.
Pajaro Valley Unified School District spokeswoman Alicia Jimenez said Lakeview Middle School will also be ready to welcome evacuees Friday, and Watsonville High School is being prepared as an overflow center should the need arise.
People leaving can go south on Highway 1 or north on Highway 17. New visitors should not travel to the county.
Evacuees should first seek shelter with friends and family. The current evacuation map is here. For information on evacuation accommodations, call 211 or Red Cross at 1-866-272-2237.
The county is asking people with extra capacity to volunteer in-law units, spare bedrooms and even tents for evacuees.
Visit Santa Cruz County is creating a database here of local hotels with capacity for evacuees. Other places offering shelter can be found on Twitter with the hashtag #LightningShelter.
The county also needs donations of tents and cases of water. These can be delivered to the county warehouse at the rear of the Emeline complex, 1082 Emeline Ave., Santa Cruz.
