Griffith Park and other Los Angeles-area parks were closed on Monday as the risk of wildfires increased in Southern California earlier in the week.
A red flag warning was in effect Monday through part of Tuesday, forcing several public facilities to close until Tuesday, including Griffith Park, the Los Angeles Zoo and the park’s Autry Museum of the American West. Fire weather forecast. Runyon Canyon remains closed until further notice.
Red Flag Warnings include a Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) designation and include National Weather Service warnings that indicate extreme fire danger above and beyond a regular Red Flag warning. The increased fire status follows deadly January wildfires that started on Jan. 7, including the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades and the Eaton Fire in the Altadena area.
The 23,700-acre Palisades Fire was 59 percent contained Monday morning. The Eaton Fire was 14,000 acres in size and contained 87 percent.
Winds increased into Monday afternoon, affecting the Santa Clarita Valley, the San Fernando Valley, including Calabasas and Agoura Hills, the Malibu Coast, the Western Santa Monica Mountains Recreation Area, the 5 Freeway, the San Gabriel Valley and the 210 Freeway, including Altadena and Glendora. north of Portions of Ventura County are also within the PDS area.
A typical red flag warning for extreme fire danger will be in effect for Los Angeles County from 8 a.m. Monday to 2 p.m. Tuesday. Wind gusts of 80 to 160 mph are expected in most wind-prone mountain areas, including the San Gabriel, western Santa Monica and the Santa Susana Mountains.
Wind gusts of 80 to 70 mph are possible in the valley.
Red flag parking regulations in the City of Los Angeles remain in effect until further notice.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has issued a wind-driven dust and ash warning until 10 p.m. Tuesday, with strong Santa Ana winds expected to impact the area. Authorities advised residents to stay indoors and wear protective masks and glasses when going out.
The causes of the Eaton and Palisades fires are still under investigation. The operation began on January 7 in what firefighters called the worst fire conditions they had ever seen.
27 deaths have been reported in connection with the fire, and at least 14,362 structures have been destroyed.
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