Forecasters are warning that gusty winds and low humidity will create dangerous fire weather conditions in Southern California on Sunday.
The National Weather Service said an unseasonably strong trough of low pressure is moving inland along the West Coast, producing gusty winds that can cause wildfires to spread.
The warnings came as firefighters continued to battle an 800-acre brush blaze in the Santa Clarita area. Residents of about 700 homes who had been evacuated as the flames neared were allowed to return home as firefighters believed they had gained the upper hand in keeping the fire away from residential communities.
“A combination of hot and dry conditions with gusty winds will bring dangerous fire weather conditions to a large portion of the western U.S. this weekend,” the weather service said. “Any fire in this region will have the potential to grow rapidly out of control.”
Red flag warnings are in effect Sunday for parts of Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura and Kern counties.
West to northwest winds will become more widespread and shift to the northwest to north by Sunday afternoon with gusts 40 to 50 mph. Humidity will fall to ten to twenty percent with isolated single digits possible over the higher peaks.
The forecast for central Los Angeles from Malibu to Long Beach on Sunday calls for morning clouds and fog, then sun with highs from the lower to mid 70s at the beaches to the low to mid 80s inland. Lower overnight will be in the mid 60s.