The wildfires continue to impact Santa Cruz County. There are approximately 57,000 acres involved, but we are now at 2% containment thanks to the amazing efforts of fire crews. The fire remains about a mile north of campus and CAL FIRE crews are establishing fire lines to try and slow the spread toward the campus and the city of Santa Cruz. Conditions can change quickly, and we continue to monitor the situation closely.
Pursuant to applicable orders, the residential campus, Westside Research Park, and Coastal Science Campus have been evacuated and all remain closed. Please do not attempt to access these locations. This is not just for your safety, but for those of first responders who are focusing on containing the fire.
We have received an outpouring of support from the community and several other campuses. San Jose State University has offered rooms for our students who do not have another place to go, and this afternoon we sent our first group of students to their campus to be welcomed into their housing. We continue to house employees who were evacuated and do not have other places to go at the University Town Center. We are currently full at this site, but are looking to expand options. Additional information will be shared with employees soon. Please continue to visit the UC Santa Cruz website for updates and resources.
Students who have support needs can continue to access resources and services. An update to employees outlining support services was sent last night.
As we continue to implement our fire response and support services, it is critical to know which members of our campus community have lost their homes in the fire. If you are a student or employee who has lost your home, please provide that information using this form.
Though the last four days have been full of extreme challenges for our Slug community, it has also been full of countless examples of humanity as you all have stepped in to support each other.
