CNS –
“Extreme” fire weather is expected to hit the Los Angeles area Monday morning through Tuesday evening, accompanied by damaging Santa Ana winds reaching speeds of up to 100 mph and relative humidity as low as 3%.
On account of extremely dangerous fire weather, 12.8 million people in Southern California have received red flag warnings. The mountains of Santa Monica, San Gabriel, and Santa Susana, as well as Interstate 210 from Altadena to the northern San Fernando Valley (including Oxnard, Malibu, Santa Clarita, Palmdale, Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley, and Burbank), are predicted to see the most hazardous circumstances.
The National Weather Service reports that gusts of 50 to 70 mph in lowlands and 60 to 100 mph in foothills and mountains will greatly facilitate the rapid beginning and spread of wildfires. Midday on Monday and the early hours of Tuesday will see the heaviest wind gusts.
Oxnard (Ventura County) weather bureau chief meteorologist Ariel Cohen warned that “there is going to be a powerful damaging wind event, bringing particularly dangerous red flag conditions” in the near future. The next day is a good opportunity for everyone to get ready for this. I know that everyone is exhausted after the terrible fire weather that we’ve experienced, but please do not let your guard down just yet. Another severe round of fire weather is coming, and you must be prepared.
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Cohen said that people should have several means of receiving evacuation alerts and that they should charge their telephones. He emphasized the need of staying indoors and away from windows, and parked vehicles far from trees.
The weather should not be treated lightly at this time, according to Cohen. “Another extreme event is just around the corner.”
The northern San Gabriel and San Fernando valleys, approximately from La Crescenta to Porter Ranch, are likely to continue to be the only areas impacted by “mountain wave” wind patterns. On Monday and Tuesday, destructive winds are expected to remain north of Pasadena, in contrast to the night the Eaton Fire began, when strong gusts reached far into the foothills.
According to meteorologist Rose Schoenfeld of the weather service, winds will be favoring Ventura County on Monday and Tuesday, following a pattern similar to the one that occurred on November 6, 2024, when the Mountain Fire destroyed hundreds of structures in Camarillo (Ventura County).
Los Angeles Wildfires Escalate with Strong Winds Expected This Week
On the night of January 7, when the Palisades and Eaton fires broke out, the wind was predicted to be somewhat weaker, but the air mass will be even drier. We expect relative humidity levels between 3% and 15%. According to certain weather models, Southern California will experience record-low levels of atmospheric moisture, also called precipitable water.
“Bone dry,” commentated Cohen. “In January, it won’t get any drier than this.”
As of Sunday morning, almost 173,000 customers of Southern California Edison were being considered for power shutoffs due to public safety concerns. There were around 84,000 consumers on the San Diego Gas and Electric Co.’s list who could lose power.
Since April of 2024, Southern California has seen almost little precipitation. The United States Drought Monitor updated its severe drought warning for all of Southern California on Thursday.
Dead vegetation is at record dry levels, while live vegetation mimics conditions similar to late summer or early fall, according to a critical fuels and fire behavior advisory issued Thursday by the National Interagency Fire Center for the Southern California coast.
According to the Southern California Predictive Services Unit, “fuels in Southern California have reached unprecedented levels of dryness” due to “prolonged dry conditions, extended periods of warm, dry weather and frequent Santa Ana wind events,” as stated in the alert. “This level of fuel volatility is unprecedented for January and would be noticeable in the summer.”