Strong Santa Ana winds and red flag warnings are in the Sunday’s forecast for widespread parts of Southern California as October goes out with a roar.
Red flag warnings will be in effect from early Sunday morning through Monday evening for parts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties due to powerful wind gusts and low humidity levels. A fire weather watch was issued earlier, alerting agencies to the potential for a red flag event, indicating extreme fire danger and rapid rates of spread.
The weekend forecast includes the region's first significant Santa Ana winds of the season.
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"This is a DANGEROUS situation," the National Weather Service said. "Residents in high fire danger areas should PREPARE NOW if called to evacuate."
Santa Ana winds occur in the fall and continue through winter, contributing to some of the region's worst wildfires. The strongest winds arrive Sunday, when gusts of 40 to 50 mph are possible in the Cajon Pass and along the Ventura County coast.
"By the time we get into Sunday morning, 10 a.m., we've got our classic Santa Ana wind here," said NBC4 forecaster David Biggar. "We'll continue to see these winds throughout the entire day for Sunday.
"By 6 p.m., it is still very gust across the Inland Empire. We'll start to see the wind gusts let up just a touch by Monday."
To the north, a large swath of California from the Bay Area to Redding and Fortuna counties is under a more severe red flag warning. The red flag warning is in effect Saturday and Sunday, particularly for high elevation areas of the North Bay, East Bay and Santa Cruz Mountains, where wind gusts will range from 45 mph to upwards of 50 mph.
Calmer conditions are in the Halloween Tuesday forecast.
SoCal Edison is considering power safety shutoffs for approximately 150,000 customers in LA (35,231), Orange (24,518), Riverside (21,607), San Bernardino (23,800) and Ventura (45,084), the agency reported Friday afternoon. The shutoffs are considered a last resort due to the increased risk of fast-moving wildfires.
