Southern California is facing a dangerous weekend of powerful Santa Ana winds and elevated wildfire risk, with officials warning that one spark could quickly trigger a devastating blaze.
Red Flag Warnings are scheduled to begin at 2 a.m. Saturday and continue until 6 p.m. in fire-prone areas of Los Angeles and Ventura counties. The affected region includes the Santa Monica Mountains, the western San Gabriel Mountains and the Highway 14 corridor.
The National Weather Service expects wind gusts of 30 to 45 mph in mountain communities, with isolated gusts possibly reaching 55 mph. Temperatures may rise into the 80s and 90s, while low humidity adds to the threat of rapid wildfire growth.
“If fire ignition occurs, conditions are favorable for extreme fire behavior, which could threaten life and property,” the Weather Service warned.
Recent rain has not been enough to remove the danger.
“Live fuel moisture is still in the 65-80% range, which means the area is not ‘out of the woods’ with respect to the fire threat,” the Weather Service said.
The warning comes just weeks after Santa Ana winds in October helped drive the 570-acre Norte Fire through San Clemente and nearby San Juan Capistrano. The blaze damaged or destroyed seven homes and prompted thousands of evacuations.
Southern California Edison is also preparing for possible Public Safety Power Shutoffs. As of Friday morning, nearly 4,900 customers in Los Angeles and Ventura counties were being considered for outages.
The temporary outages are designed to reduce the risk that wind-damaged power lines or electrical equipment could ignite a wildfire.
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Los Angeles County public safety agencies have expanded their preparations, adding fire department staffing and positioning ground crews and aircraft ahead of the wind event.
“With strong winds capable of driving rapid wildfire growth, we urge residents to be prepared,” county Fire Chief Anthony C. Marrone said.
“Review your Ready! Set! Go! Wildfire Action Plan, practice your evacuation routes, check-in with neighbors who may need assistance during an evacuation, and call 9-1-1 immediately if you see signs of smoke or fire.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said firefighters and equipment would be placed in strategic locations from Friday evening through Sunday morning.
The Los Angeles Fire Department will activate its Red Flag Parking Restriction Program at 6 a.m. Saturday. The measure bans parking on designated streets in very high fire-hazard areas to help keep evacuation routes open.
Officials are advising residents to map out evacuation routes, make arrangements for pets, keep vehicles fueled or charged and stock emergency supplies and backup batteries. People who may need additional time or assistance should leave when an evacuation warning is issued instead of waiting for a mandatory order.
Another weather concern is developing along the coast, where high surf and coastal flooding advisories are in effect through Wednesday. Morning high tides could reach 7.7 feet, while waves along the Central Coast may exceed 8 feet.
Some relief could arrive next week. Forecasters are tracking a storm system that may bring widespread moderate rain beginning Friday, Nov. 13, with the strongest chances of precipitation continuing through the following Monday.
Officials cautioned, however, that the storm’s timing and rainfall totals remain uncertain.
