El Capitan State Beach set to re-open

El Capitan State Beach is set to re-open, Friday, June 26, after Governor Jerry Brown declared a State of Emergency due to the massive oil spill. Campers are asked not to check in until 12:00 p.m.

This comes after the California Department of Parks and Recreation announced that the site assessment of the beach came back safe for the public.

The spill was reported around noon on May 19, 2015 after concerned residents called 911 because of a gasoline-like aroma near the beach. A county fire crew then found a 24-inch underground pipeline had ruptured. At that time about a half-mile stretch of oil had already spread across the water.

Refugio State Beach and the campground at El Capitan State Park were closed and dozens of campers were told to evacuate. People who live around the state beach were self-evacuating because of the overly strong odor.

As of now reservations at Refugio State Beach have been cancelled until July 9. We are told that additional reservations may be cancelled depending on the progress of the clean-up. State Parks staff will continue to monitor the cleanup and re-evaluated the closures.

Meanwhile affected reservation holders will be notified by e-mail and voicemail of any future cancellations.

For any status and updates check the State Parks webpage at http://goo.gl/ZwWU6d.

All other beaches in the Santa Barbara area are open to the public.