Gusty Santa Ana winds lashed the Southland Thursday amid low humidity and relatively high heat, threatening for the second straight day to spark and spread wildfires.
“The ongoing Santa Ana event will continue to bring critical fire weather conditions to most of Ventura and Los Angeles counties through Thursday evening,” according to an NWS statement.
A red flag warning denoting a risk of wildfire was issued by the National Weather Service Wednesday and will remain in force through Thursday night in the San Gabriel and Santa Monica mountains, the Angeles National Forest, the Santa Clarita and San Fernando valleys, and several mountain, forest and valley areas of Ventura County.
The wind was expected to blow at between 20 and 35 miles per hour in mountain and forest areas, gusting to 55 mph, while the humidity will run between 5 and 12 percent, NWS forecasters said. In the valleys, winds of between 15 and 25 mph with 40 mph gusts were expected, along with humidity of between 6 and 15 percent, they said.
Along with red flag warnings, the NWS issued wind advisories scheduled to remain in force until 3 p.m. in the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys and the San Gabriel and and Santa Monica mountains. In Inland Orange County, a wind advisory will be in effect until 2 this afternoon.
“Strong winds can make driving difficult, especially for drivers of high-profile vehicles and vehicles towing trailers,” according to an NWS statement. “Winds this strong may down trees and power lines and cause property damage.”
The NWS forecast sunny skies Thursday and highs of 68 on Mount Wilson; 74 in San Clemente, Palmdale and Lancaster; 75 in Avalon and Laguna Beach; 76 in Newport Beach; 81 at LAX and in Mission Viejo; 82 in Saugus; 83 in San Gabriel, Burbank, Anaheim and Irvine; 84 in Pasadena, Yorba Linda and Fullerton; 85 in downtown L.A; and 86 in Long Beach and Woodland Hills.
NWS forecasters said Thursday’s temperatures will be roughly 10 degrees higher than the norm. In downtown, a high of 85 is expected; 73 would be normal both in downtown and in Burbank, where Thursday’s highs will be 83.
Friday’s temperatures will be slightly cooler in many communities, and a cooling trend will begin Saturday. There’s a light chance of rain this coming Wednesday, forecasters said.
—City News Service