Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Unsponsored, unsanctioned 'Deltopia' party in Isla Visa overwhelms first responders

Huge crowds flooded parts of Isla Vista over the weekend in unsanctioned, unsponsored parties which swamped first responders with calls for emergency aid.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office
Huge crowds flooded parts of Isla Vista over the weekend in unsanctioned, unsponsored parties which swamped first responders with calls for emergency aid.

Santa Barbara County firefighters were swamped by emergency calls Saturday. Crowd estimated at more than 20,000 people.

Thousands of spring break partygoers converged on Isla Vista over the weekend, swamping first responders with calls for emergency aid. Authorities estimated the size of the crowd at more than 20,000 people.

A mass casualty incident was declared Saturday afternoon, with emergency calls shifted to a triage system. The issues ranged from people falling off of balconies to alcohol and drug overdoses.

The mass casualty declaration was dropped Saturday night, with emergency crews catching up on calls.

Santa Barbara County tried to prevent the unsanctioned, unsponsored parties by closing Isla Vista's beaches for the weekend.

In the mid-2000's, students organized an annual spring break party on the beaches dubbed Floatopia. In 2009, it turned into an out of control event swamping first responders, and resulting in tons of debris being left on the beaches.

After the county started closing the beaches over spring break, some students starting holding parties in Isla Vista known as Deltopia. In 2014, it turned into a riot which left some partygoers and law enforcement officers injured.

The pandemic helped ease Deltopia concerns for the last two years, but with COVID-19 concerns dropping, the huge crowds were back in Isla Vista over the weekend.

A number of arrests and citations are being reported, but there's no word on final weekend numbers yet.

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.