Man fatally shot in Lompoc
LOMPOC – Lompoc police officers responded Sunday at 7:20 p.m. to 321 W. North Ave. for a report of a victim being shot.
When officers arrived, they located a male victim lying on the ground. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The male victim was identified as Ivan Lopez Lopez.
Detectives responded to the scene and took over the investigation.
The next of kin have been notified.
This incident does not appear to be gang related, police said.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to call the Lompoc Police Department.
The investigation is ongoing.
– Neil Hartstein
Data: Overdose deaths in county continue to rise
SANTA BARBARA — The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office is sharing its latest data on overdose death statistics in the county, which reveals that the situation continues to escalate.
A total of 168 overdose deaths occurred in 2022, with 115 of them being related to fentanyl. This compares to 133 total overdose deaths in 2021, with 78 related to fentanyl. In 2020, there were 113 total overdoses with 37 related to fentanyl.
In light of these alarming statistics, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office is taking action. The Sheriff’s Office and Project Opioid, a diverse coalition of community leaders from various disciplines, are committed to addressing the opioid crisis and saving lives. To this end, they are supporting the distribution of Narcan, a drug that reverses the often-lethal effects of an opioid overdose.
Sheriff Bill Brown said, “Narcan is a harmless, yet miraculous drug that reverses the often lethal effects of an opioid overdose. Simply put, it’s easy to use and it saves lives. Making more Narcan available to community members will help us lower the unacceptably high rate of overdose deaths we are seeing in our community and across the nation.”
Beginning this week, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office is hosting a FREE Narcan Distribution Program through the Department of Health Care Services, Naloxone Distribution Project (NDP) at Sheriff’s Headquarters, as well as the Carpinteria and Santa Maria substations. This program aims to distribute Narcan to members of the public and increase awareness about the opioid crisis and the importance of Narcan in saving lives.
Members of the public can come to the lobby of one of these three stations during business hours, obtain information about a short instructional video and receive Narcan. This program is free to the public and members of the public are not required to provide personal information to participate.
The Sheriff’s Office is joining our partners in Project Opioid who also have Narcan distribution programs including the Pacific Pride Foundation, the Santa Barbara Opioid Safety Coalition, UC Santa Barbara Student Health Services Alcohol and Drug Program, and Fentanyl is Forever SB.
The members of Project Opioid are committed to working together to address the opioid crisis and reduce the number of overdose deaths in the county. The Narcan Distribution Program is an important step towards achieving this goal, and we encourage community members to take advantage of this program and help us save lives.
– Neil Hartstein
Caltrans plans ramp closures in Seacliff
VENTURA COUNTY — The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) plans daytime closures of Seacliff off- and on-ramps on southbound U.S. Highway 101 south of Mussel Shoals in Ventura County from today through Friday.
Signs will be posted. Motorists can expect delays. All work is subject to change due to weather.
The National Weather Service is forecasting several hours of steady, mostly light rain on today and Wednesday in the Central Coast and southern California.
Check http://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/ for real-time traffic information.
Motorists traveling south on U.S. 101 can reach state beaches on State Route 1 (Pacific Coast Highway) by continuing to the Main Street off-ramp in Ventura, U-turn to northbound U.S. 101 and exit at the State Beaches off-ramp.
La Conchita residents traveling south can use the same route but continue north on U.S. Highway 101.
Residents and businesses located near the freeway may experience noise, vibrations and dust associated with construction activities.
Caltrans reminds drivers to “Be Work Zone Alert” and to “Slow for the Cone Zone.”
– Neil Hartstein
Prescribed burn planned near Figueroa Mountain, other locations
SANTA BARBARA – A prescribed pile burning of 1-10 treated acres of slash from felled dead trees and brush will take place this week.
Most burning operations will begin in the morning and conclude in the afternoon. However, some burning operations may continue through the evening to allow for full consumption of flammable material.
The burning will occur near Figueroa Mountain and various other forest locations (updated on Los Padres Twitter and Facebook accounts).
The goal of the series of pile burns is to reduce the risk of wildfire. Prescribed, or planned, fires typically burn less intensely than wildfires. Prescribed burns can help prevent the spread of wildfires and can reduce impacts to watersheds that can result in soil loss and sedimentation.
The burn will be conducted when the meteorological conditions are highly favorable to direct smoke away from population centers.
This prescribed burn is planned and coordinated by the Los Padres National Forest with Santa Barbara County APCD, San Luis Obispo County APCD, San Joaquin Valley APCD, Ventura
County APCD, and the California Air Resources Board to minimize impacts on air quality on surrounding communities.
This burn depends on weather and air quality conditions that are favorable for smoke dispersal. If the conditions are not as desired, the burn will be rescheduled.
– Neil Hartstein
