A man who fell off a bluff in Isla Vista Saturday afternoon succumbed to his injuries in a nearby hospital. On Monday, Santa Barbara County Sheriff's officials identified him as Jacob William Aladar Parker, 23, of San Diego.
Santa Barbara County Fire PIO Scott Safechuck says the dangers of the bluffs could be mitigated if the residential areas near Ivy Park and the Isla Vista bluffs installed higher fencing. He also urges community members to speak up, and if you see something, say something — if someone crosses over a barrier fence, dial 911.
The death comes in the wake of a recently approved "8-Point Plan" to improve the hazardous conditions along the bluffs in Isla Vista. The plan came after a student who was attending Santa Barbara City College died after falling from the bluffs, marking the 13th death.
Santa Barbara County Supervisor Laura Capps played a role in the bluff enhancement plan and in a statement, she tells KSBY, "This tragedy is a stark reminder of how dangerous these blufftop properties are. Property owners: this is an urgent plea to do what’s right to help save lives. We all need to step up and make Isla Vista safer now.”
“I think the kids have to watch each other," said visitor Timothy Bigelow. "I think the city has to wall it off a little bit more too, maybe a higher fence or some kind of fence that they can't climb over would be ideal."
“Just looking at it right here, it's kind of scary to see just how much erosion has happened and seeing like the exposed infrastructure and everything," said Kennedy Robinett, architecture major and Goleta resident.
Robinett moved to Goleta after graduating from UC Berkeley and said her coworkers said the coastline has gotten progressively worse as time progresses.
“I have a sister who goes to UCSB parties and stuff like that," Robinett added. "So I'm definitely making sure that she's safe in these situations and telling her to stay away from at least the edge when she's down here.”
“I study these terraces for part of my PHD and just generally they're not stable," said UCSB sedimentology major Lauren Mumby. "They don't look stable. They don't feel stable. You can see parts of the rocks coming down and falling off of the cliffs and it's just, it's not a good sign.”
