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Santa Cruz County Public Safety Overview



California Local Pin Marker Get To Know A Group

California Police Activities League is a nonprofit organization that fosters positive relationship between young people and police officers. It provides youth-oriented programs and training that helps reduce juvenile crime. The PAL operates multiple chapters around the state.

California Local Pin Marker Local Public Safety Digest

Hardening Your Home Against Wildfires

01/14/2025

Read on to learn about the measures taken to harden and protect the lone remaining house of the neighborhoodfrom the Pacific Palisades fire in Southern California.

Updated Watch Duty Eaton Fire Information

01/11/2025

Official updated information from WatchDuty about the Eaton Fire in Southern California.

California Local Pin Marker Recent Articles

San Lorenzo Valley Post logo LOCAL NEWS
The Scientific Benefits of Prescribed Fire and Forest Stewardship

By Barbara Satink Wolfson, David Benterou, and Jared Childress

Image caption: A Pyrocumulus cloud generated by the Dixie Fire in July, 2021.
What is Fire 'Containment?' That and Other Terms, Explained

What does it mean when firefighters call a fire "contained?" Here's a brief guide to commonly used fire prevention terminology.

KSQD logo LOCAL NEWS
Santa Cruz County’s Mobile Response Unit Saves Lives

As local governments try to stretch their budgets to accommodate a new wave of mental health cases, a new program is trying to shift the emergency response from uniformed officers to trained mental health counselors. Since the killing by police …

The Pajaronian logo LOCAL NEWS
Santa Cruz Wharf Reopens

About 150 people attended a brief ceremony Saturday morning hosted by Santa Cruz City officials to kick open the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf after it was closed Dec. 23 due to heavy surf damage.

The Pajaronian logo LOCAL NEWS
Santa Cruz Wharf to Reopen Saturday

About two weeks after heavy surf damaged the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, forcing its closure and all the businesses there, the city will host a reopening on Jan. 4.

The Pajaronian logo LOCAL NEWS
Major Damage in Capitola Explosion, Fire

A powerful explosion and fire tore through a two-story apartment building in Capitola Village early Christmas morning. No injuries were reported in the 5:10am incident on the 100 block of Lawn Way.

The Pajaronian logo LOCAL NEWS
State Announces New Pesticide Rule

The Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) on Dec. 19 announced a new rule that will provide notice to the public in advance of applications of certain hazardous and drift-prone agricultural pesticides.

The Pajaronian logo LOCAL NEWS
Santa Cruz Wharf to Remain Closed After Damage

Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf will remain closed indefinitely after waves on Monday sheared off a 125-foot section that was already closed and under construction from storm damage in 2023.

Good Times logo LOCAL NEWS
Update: More Details on Santa Cruz Wharf Damage

Heavy surf on Monday smashed into the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, shearing off a 125-foot section off the end and sending an already-closed business into the ocean, along with a public restroom and two pieces of heavy construction equipment.

Tahoe Daily Tribune logo LOCAL NEWS
‘Governors Are Going to Have to Create a New System’: Leaders in the West Lambast Insurance Industry Over Rising Costs for Homeowners

Smoke and burned trees are pictured near Sylvan Lake State Park during a wildfire that erupted south of Eagle in the White River National Forest on June 20, 2021. With intense wildfires becoming a greater threat in the West, homeowners …

Featured

A Pyrocumulus cloud generated by the Dixie Fire in July, 2021.
What is Fire 'Containment?' That and Other Terms, Explained
What does it mean when firefighters call a fire "contained?" Here's a brief guide to commonly used fire prevention terminology.
States have expansive powers to protect the health of the general public.
The State’s Broad Power to Protect Public Health, Explained
Since long before the COVID-19 pandemic, states have possessed broad authority to protect public health.
California will soon be getting a new hotline number as an alternative to 911 for mental health crises.
988, the New Mental Health Emergency Number, Explained
Here's the story behind that new service, and the original 911 number.
Mosquitos kill about 725,000 people every year, worldwide.
Taking a Bite Out of the Mosquito Population
How local government tries to control the world’s deadliest wild animal—the mosquito.
There are more than 300 community service districts in California.
Community Services Districts, Explained
Areas that the county overlooks can form their own local governments.
How Not to Feel the Burn
These groups help residents preserve their property, health and life.
Supercell storms are just one of many weather phenomena in the era of climate change.
The New Vocabulary of the Climate Change Era
As climate change causes more extreme and unusual weather, we need a new set of terms to describe the various phenomena
Though it’s the most famous, the San Andreas Fault is just one of more than 500 active faults in California.
Battening Down for the Big One
Making it through the earthquake is easy—the hard part comes later.
Many of Robert Kerbeck’s neighbors in Malibu Park lost their homes in the 2018 Woolsey Fire, which left behind lots where only chimneys still stood.
Give Your Home a Fighting Chance in a Wildfire
Wildfires are larger, more frequent, and more ferocious—so be prepared.
Thousands of homeowners have been kicked off their fire insurance policies.
California Fire Insurance Crisis: How the State Helps Homeowners
The state tries persuading insurance companies to cover homes in fire zones.
With CERT training, volunteers can learn firefighting skills.
Emergency Teamwork
With CERT training, ordinary civilians can play critical roles in protecting their communities.
Members of the Amateur Radio Emergency Service hone their skills at various local events.
Listening Skills
With the CZU fires in mind, volunteers in the Santa Cruz Mountains are taking emergency communications into their own hands.
Workers clean up after flooding in Capitola Village.
Disaster Prep: Alerts, Maps and Apps
Keep these online resources handy in case of floods, fires, quakes and other disasters
View of the flooded San Lorenzo River Park Benchlands in Santa Cruz, California on New Year's Eve 2022.
Communicating During Disaster and Crisis
Recent lessons learned over days of local disaster.
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