LOS ANGELES (CNS) – Windy and dry conditions are expected to linger Wednesday in Los Angeles County, a day after a round of destructive Santa Ana winds battered much of the region, fueling a massive brush fire in Malibu and raising fears of additional blazes across the Southland.
As expected, the winds began whipping Monday night, helping the Franklin Fire in Malibu chew its way into thick vegetation and grow to more than 3,000 acres as of Wednesday. A “minimal” number of homes in the area were destroyed or damaged, fire officials said, although no numbers were immediately available. No injuries were reported, but about 18,000 people were under evacuation orders or warnings.
According to the National Weather Service, wind gusts approached nearly 50 mph in parts of Malibu during the early morning hours Tuesday. To the north, a gust of 93 mph was reported near the Magic Mountain Truck Trail in the Santa Clarita area.
By Tuesday evening, however, conditions were showing signs of improvement, although the wildfire danger persisted.
“The strongest winds have passed, however gusty winds are still expected through Wednesday morning, especially in the mountains,” according to the National Weather Service. “Critical fire weather conditions will continue through Wednesday.”
The NWS issued a rare “particularly dangerous situation red flag warning” that was in effect until 2 p.m. Tuesday for the San Gabriel Mountains, Santa Monica Mountains, Santa Clarita Valley, Western San Fernando Valley, Calabasas, the Antelope Valley (14) Freeway corridor and the Malibu coast.
While that warning expired at 2 p.m., a standard red flag warning will remain in place in most of those areas until 6 p.m. Wednesday, but it was scheduled to expire at 2 p.m. Wednesday for the Malibu Coast, according to the NWS.
Red flag warnings were canceled in the eastern San Fernando Valley and the San Gabriel Valley.
“It will be a cold night tonight in many areas, especially the Antelope Valley and in wind protected areas where temperatures will drop into the high teens and 20s in the colder areas,” according to the NWS.
More clouds are also in the forecast starting Wednesday as a new weather system moves in, bringing a chance of “some light rain across the area” on Thursday, although the L.A. area was unlikely to much — if any — precipitation.
Another system was expected in the region by Saturday, again bringing only a slight chance of light rain to the area.
As is typical during red flag conditions, Southern California Edison advised thousands of customers that they could be subject to power cuts designed to prevent electrical equipment from sparking wildfires during threatening winds.
As of Tuesday evening, more than 11,500 SCE customers in Los Angeles County were without power due to the Public Safety Power Shutoffs, along with 452 in Orange County and more than 8,500 in Riverside County. Not surprisingly, the majority of the intentional power cuts in Los Angeles County were focused in the fire-impacted Malibu area.
Recent Comments