MAY 12, 2026 – Coast Guard and agency partners responded to a fire onboard a non-operational natural gas platform offshore Santa Barbara, Monday.
Responders and platform personnel reported that the fire was extinguished at 11:40 a.m.
At 6:30 a.m. a fire occurred aboard platform Habitat when platform personnel were conducting decommissioning operations for the platform.
“The safety of personnel and protection of the environment remain the Unified Command’s highest priorities,” said Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Marler, chief of incident management division for Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach. “We are grateful for the interagency coordination amongst all of our partner agencies during this response.”
There are currently no indications of oil being released from the platform into the water and no current impacts to wildlife or the public.
An investigation will be conducted to determine the cause of the incident.
Platform Habitat, a non-oil producing platform, is located approximately 8 miles southwest of Santa Barbara. The platform produces natural gas and is in the process of being decommissioned.
Additional information will be released as it becomes available.
Agencies involved:
- U.S. Coast Guard Southwest District
- U.S. Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach
- U.S. Coast Guard Station Channel Islands
- Ventura County Fire Department
- Ventura City Fire Department
- Santa Barbara County Fire Department
- Santa Barbara City Fire Department
- Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement
- Marine Spill Response Corporation
U.S. Coast Guard Southwest District Phone: (206) 815-6689
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