Santa Barbara CountyPower Outage History
What this grade means
Average — typical outage frequency and duration nationally. This county sits in the middle of the national distribution — its outage frequency and duration over the past 12 years are close to the nationwide median, neither notably better nor worse than most other US counties. A typical amount of backup-power preparedness is reasonable here.
Outages by year
Outages by month (seasonality)
Worst outage events on record
| Date | Duration | Customers affected | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 5, 2017 | 2 hrs | 56,650 (29%) | Unnamed event |
| Jan 17, 2019 | 3 hrs | 22,471 (12%) | Unnamed event |
| Aug 15, 2020 | 9 hrs | 20,656 (11%) | Unnamed event |
| Feb 24, 2019 | 3 hrs | 20,617 (11%) | Unnamed event |
| Nov 17, 2015 | 3 hrs | 19,069 (10%) | Unnamed event |
Was There an Outage on a Specific Date?
Pick a date to see whether a power outage was recorded for Santa Barbara County, California that day.
Over the 12 years from 2014 to 2025, Santa Barbara County recorded 3,449 distinct power outage events, averaging 3.7 hours per event.
The single worst outage on record in Santa Barbara County started December 5, 2017, lasting 2 hours and leaving up to 56,650 customers without power (29% of the county) at its peak.
June has historically been the worst month for outages in Santa Barbara County, with 334 events recorded during that month across the dataset.
Based on this history, Santa Barbara County earns a Reliability Grade of C, placing it in the 48th percentile nationally for grid reliability (higher percentile = more reliable).
Similar counties in California
Counties with the closest reliability grade and national percentile to Santa Barbara County.
| County | Grade | National percentile |
|---|---|---|
| San Luis Obispo County | C | 48th |
| Riverside County | C | 45th |
| Solano County | C | 44th |
| Los Angeles County | C | 42nd |
| San Bernardino County | C | 41st |
Most reliable counties nationally
The top 3 counties nationally by reliability grade and percentile.
| County | State | Grade | National percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clay County | South Dakota | A | 100th |
| Clearwater County | Minnesota | A | 99th |
| Limestone County | Alabama | A | 99th |
Least reliable counties nationally
The bottom 3 counties nationally by reliability grade and percentile.
| County | State | Grade | National percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clay County | West Virginia | F | 0th |
| Lincoln County | West Virginia | F | 0th |
| Cameron Parish | Louisiana | F | 0th |
FAQ
How often does power go out in Santa Barbara County?
Between 2014 and 2025, Santa Barbara County recorded 3,449 outage events, averaging 3.7 hours each.
What is Santa Barbara County's reliability grade?
Santa Barbara County has a Reliability Grade of C, in the 48th national percentile.
What was the worst power outage in Santa Barbara County?
The worst outage on record started December 5, 2017, lasting 2 hours and affecting up to 56,650 customers.