Get to safety
A current list of emergency shelters for county residents fleeing the CZU August Lightning Complex Fires is available on the county’s Fire Resources page. There is also a color-coded map here.
A few have filled up, but space for people, vehicles and pets is still available at designated churches, campgrounds and other sites in Soquel, Santa Cruz and Watsonville. For more information about emergency accommodations, call 211 or call the Red Cross at 866-272-2237.
One shelter, Rodeway Inn, 1620 W. Beach St., in Watsonville, is designated for COVID-19.
People sheltering together at other evacuation shelters are reminded to wear face coverings, keep 6 feet of distance, wash hands often and take other standard pandemic precautions against the spread of COVID-19.
Those who need help moving animals should call 831-471-1182. Horses can be boarded at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds, 2601 E. Lake Ave., in Watsonville. Pets taken to shelters must stay with their owners and be kept under control.
How to help
Donations are welcome to help those who have evacuated their homes. Cash can be given through Community Foundation Santa Cruz County’s Fire Response Fund.
Supply donations — which must be new because of pandemic considerations — can be taken to the county’s General Services Warehouse, 1082 Emeline Ave., in Santa Cruz. Useful items include large tents for families, sleeping bags and pads, blankets and pillows, tarps, bottled water and energy bars, hand sanitizer, toiletries and personal hygiene products, coloring books and crayons, large plastic storage bins, surgical masks, and empty spray bottles that can be filled with the county’s bulk supply of disinfectant. (Clothing should be taken to the nearest Goodwill, not to the warehouse.)
Volunteers are also welcome. Efforts are being coordinated by the Santa Cruz Volunteer Center.
