The most extreme level of fire warning, “particularly hazardous conditions,” was returned to parts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties Wednesday morning. The most dangerous times are from just before sunrise until noon.
Wind gusts in the mountains are expected to increase from 45 mph to 55 mph, with localized wind gusts reaching up to 60 mph, according to the National Weather Service office in Oxnard. Forecasters expect Wednesday to be significantly windier than Tuesday.
This article is provided free of charge to help keep our community safe and supported during these devastating fires.
Ventura County is expected to be particularly at risk in the event of a fire. The mountains of northern Ventura County could experience stronger winds than typically seen in Santa Ana wind events.
Wind gusts reached up to 54 mph in the Santa Susana Mountains Wednesday morning.
“We’re not out of the woods yet, and people need to remain vigilant for rapidly moving fires,” said meteorologist Ryan Kittel of the National Weather Service office in Oxnard.
Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Eric Scott warned firefighters of the Palisades fire area, where the vegetation is extremely dry and “fire-prone.” “We’re worried that the winds will pick up this 23,000-acre pile of smoldering debris and set it alight in the remaining brush.”
As of 3 a.m., “particularly dangerous conditions” had returned in parts of the San Fernando Valley and Ventura County, including Northridge, Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley, Camarillo and Fillmore.
“Particularly hazardous conditions” means the most extreme level of a fire alert, but officials said Wednesday’s winds were not as intense as the historic windstorms that caused devastating fires in the Palisades and Eaton last week. He points out that there is no such thing.
The “particularly dangerous situation” was expected to continue until 3pm on Wednesday.
“Even though the economy is weaker, it’s still a worrying time,” Kittel said. It’s still very dry, so I’m really worried about windy days like this. ”
Traditional red flag warnings, which warn of a severe wildfire if it ignites, remain in effect for much of Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura counties, as well as some mountainous areas of Santa Barbara and San Luis. The order has been issued. Obispo County.
In Los Angeles and Ventura counties, the air is expected to be very dry, with relative humidity down to 8%.
A red flag fire weather warning is scheduled to remain in effect until 6 p.m. Wednesday, but will be in place Thursday at 3 p.m. for several locations in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, including the Grapevine section of Interstate 5, the western San Gabriel Mountains, and the Santa Susana Mountains. It is scheduled to be extended until.
Tuesday ended up being a calmer wind day than forecasters had originally expected. That’s good news for firefighters. Containment status for last week’s devastating wildfires was stable or trending slightly upward.
Fire weather conditions are expected to improve Wednesday night into Saturday. However, there is a moderate risk that a red flag warning will be issued again from around Monday.
Rain is the only lasting relief for Southern California from this severe fire season
The region is experiencing a painful dry spell, with one of the driest winter starts on record, a key reason why the fire risk is so high. Unfortunately, forecasters say the chance of rain is still low until January 25th.
There hasn’t been much water in downtown Los Angeles in recent months. Since Oct. 1, only 0.16 inches, or just 3% of the seasonal average. During this typically high-water period, downtown Los Angeles receives an average of 5.45 inches of rain. The annual average is 14.25 inches.
“If you go without rain, it doesn’t take long,” said Alex Tardy, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in San Diego. “The vegetation is just starving for moisture, and when the wind blows over it, it starts to fire.” There is definitely a possibility that this will occur.”
Compounding the fire danger is that January is peak season for Santa Ana winds. These winds are powerful winds that occur when high pressure over Nevada and Utah sends cold air screaming toward low-pressure areas off the California coast. The air that flows from the high deserts to the northeast over California’s mountains and down the slopes through canyons dries, compresses, and heats up, drying out plants as they blow through.
Citing research from the U.S. Forest Service and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Tardy said Santa Ana winds are typically strongest in January.
“Santa Anas are very common in December and January, and that’s when we usually see the strongest, largest and most damaging Santa Anas. But we don’t usually have conditions this dry,” Tardi said. Said.
In many areas of Southern California, “this is the driest start of the water year, and we’re seeing extreme fire activity with ignition,” Tardy said.
“In my career, I have never seen such a severe event in Santa Ana overwhelm a normal winter rainy season,” said retired climate scientist Bill Patzert.
The Palisades Fire has burned more than 23,700 acres and was 18% contained as of Wednesday morning, up from 17% the day before. Containment refers to the extent to which a fire is surrounded or surrounded to the extent that firefighters believe they can stop the fire from spreading.
A pre-dawn view Wednesday from a KABC TV news helicopter showed no visible flames from the Palisades Fire. But firefighters remain focused on monitoring hot spots to reduce the risk of wind picking up smoldering embers and carrying them to new areas.
Evacuation orders or warnings are in place for many areas in the Pacific Palisades, Malibu, unincorporated Sunset Mesa, Calabasas, Brentwood and Encino. Parts of Bel Air are under evacuation orders, as are parts north of Santa Monica.
The Palisades fire destroyed 1,280 buildings and damaged 204, Scott said. But that number could rise further as authorities are still assessing the damage as well. Officials estimate that 5,300 structures were destroyed in the fire.
The Eaton Fire, burning in the Altadena area, has scorched just over 14,100 acres and was 35% contained as of Wednesday morning, the same as Monday morning.
Places under evacuation orders or warnings in the Eaton fire area include unincorporated Altadena, Quinelloa Mesa, Pasadena, Sierra Madre and La Cañada Flintridge.
Damage assessments show 2,722 structures were destroyed in the Eaton Fire, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said, but inspection teams are still scouring the fire’s footprint. Officials estimate that 7,000 structures were damaged or destroyed. Buildings can include homes, businesses, small outbuildings, sheds, and even vehicles.
The Palisades and Eaton fires are also among the deadliest fires in California history. Officials confirmed the death toll from both fires was 25 – 16 in Eaton and nine in Palisades – but warned that the death toll was likely to continue rising.
Officials said there were also reports of 37 people missing in both fires.
“This is the most devastating natural disaster to hit the Los Angeles area,” Scott said. “I have worked here for 20 years and have never seen or imagined such widespread devastation.”
Questions had been raised at various levels about the planning leading up to last week’s fire.
The Los Angeles Fire Department faced unprecedented warnings of life-threatening high winds and commanders said it had about 1,000 vacant firefighters and several others ahead of the ongoing blaze that has destroyed much of the Pacific Palisades. It was decided not to allocate the ten water engines for emergency deployment. Byrne, interviews and LAFD internal records show.
The causes of both large fires are under investigation.
Investigators investigating the Eaton Fire are focusing on the area around the Southern California Edison power transmission tower in Eaton Canyon.
As for the Palisades fire, a source familiar with the investigation told the Times that the blaze, which started in the Skull Rock area north of Sunset Boulevard, appears to be human-caused. Authorities are investigating whether a small fire that may have been started by New Year’s Eve fireworks may have somehow reignited on January 7th.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has ordered an investigation into the causes behind water supply problems that depleted hydrants and hampered efforts to extinguish fires during devastating Southern California fires.
The Times reported that numerous fire hydrants on high-altitude streets in the Palisades neighborhood had run dry and crews fighting the fire were suffering from low water pressure. The Times also revealed that a large reservoir in the Pacific Palisades, the Santa Ynez Reservoir, which is part of the Los Angeles water system, was shut down at the time of the Palisades fire.
Times staff writers Howard Bloom, Noah Goldberg, Matt Hamilton, Salvador Hernandez, Ian James, Jenny Jarvie, Paul Pringle, Dakota Smith, Alene Chekhmedian and Richard Winton contributed to this report. contributed to.
Source link
