Santa Ana Winds Will Bring Wildfire Threat On Sunday
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Strong to damaging winds are expected throughout much of the Southland on Sunday, and will bring with them an increased threat for wildfires.
The National Weather Service warned Saturday that the Antelope Valley and mountains along Interstate 5 can expect the winds to arrive sooner, with gusts up to 60 miles an hour from the northwest overnight before the direction shifts to the northeast on Sunday. Fire weather watches were expected to go into effect Saturday night in Orange and Riverside counties, with Red Flag Warnings set to begin at 10 a.m. Sunday in Los Angeles and Ventura counties.
Some of the highest gusts are expected in the Santa Monica Mountains, from Los Angeles north and west to Malibu and Camarillo, between Sunday and Tuesday mornings. The highest winds in the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys, as well as the basin, are expected during the day Sunday, with a wind advisory issued for downtown Los Angeles between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Forecasters expect sustained northeast winds of 30 miles per hour Sunday in the Inland Empire, with gusts to 70 mph possible. A relative humidity around 5 percent will add to the fire danger.
The winds will also bring cold temperatures to the mountains and Antelope Valley, with Lancaster expecting to drop below 28 degrees Sunday night.
While the winds are expected to abate somewhat on Monday, dry conditions are expected to persist into Tuesday, forecasters said.
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