Red flag warnings will go into effect early Monday for large swaths of Southern California, from Los Angeles to San Diego, due to strong Santa Ana winds, according to the National Weather Service.
Strong, dry winds combined with warm temperatures and low humidity will cause fires in the San Gabriel and Santa Monica Mountains as well as parts of the San Fernando Valley and Ventura County, according to the weather service. Inland areas of Orange County and all valleys and mountainous areas of San Bernardino and Riverside counties will also be affected.
“It’s pretty typical for this time of year,” said Sebastian Westerink, a meteorologist with the San Diego Weather Service. “This is peak wind season in Santa Ana and I would say this is at least a moderate event.”
Gusts could reach up to 80 mph in the windiest corridors of Los Angeles and Ventura counties overnight Monday into Tuesday, officials said. Gusts between 40 and 60 mph will be common and winds could reach 65 mph near San Diego in the mountains and passes.
The National Weather Service advises residents who live near wildland interfaces to prepare to evacuate if a wildfire breaks out and to avoid outdoor fires.
“Any fires that develop are likely to spread rapidly… which would threaten life and property,” the ministry said. warnings said. “There is a growing threat that fire weather conditions will rival other historic fires in recent times, including the Mountain and Thomas fires. »
Temperatures will be cooler on the coast and in the low 70s across all inland areas Monday, Westerink said. Humidity will be in the single digits, around 7% near San Diego and 5% near Los Angeles, with isolated readings as low as 2%, according to the National Weather Service.
Santa Ana winds, which originate inland from high-pressure cool air masses in the Great Basin, regularly affect Southern California this time of year and help create conditions forest fire. Dry fuel also increases the risk of wildfires, the National Weather Service said.
“It’s extremely common in early December,” said Mike Wofford, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service station in Oxnard. “It would be shocking if we didn’t have these kinds of events.”
Red flag warnings will remain in effect until Wednesday morning.
Powerful Santa Ana winds have been blamed for the devastating Camarillo Mountains Fire last month. The fire, which started Nov. 6 and burned for days, charred nearly 20,000 acres, leveled 243 buildings and damaged dozens more in neighboring communities in western Ventura County, according to data released by the state fire department.
That tally places the fire as the third most destructive wildfire in Southern California since at least 2013.
