Full Notification

A strong Santa Ana wind event is expected to begin Thursday morning and continue through Friday evening, focused over much of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. Peak winds will likely occur Thursday night into Friday morning when there will be the potential for gusts in the 40 to 50 mph range for valleys and coasts, and 60 to 70 mph in the mountains. Humidities are in the single digits today and will spread down into the valleys and coasts late Thursday morning and afternoon. There will be poor overnight recoveries in the hills and windier locations Thursday night. Temperatures will warm into the 80s below the mountains on Friday. There will be an overall break in the winds Saturday and Saturday night, however, another Santa Ana is expected to develop Sunday through Monday. This wind event will not be as strong as the first, but humidities will again drop into the single digits and valley and coastal temperatures look warmer with highs into the mid 80s. A fire weather watch may eventually be needed for this second event. The National Weather Service in Los Angeles/Oxnard has issued a Red Flag Warning FOR WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY, which is in effect from 10 AM Thursday to 10 PM PST Friday. The Fire Weather Watch is no longer in effect.

* Winds...Northeast 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 55 mph. Peak winds 30 to 40 mph with gusts to 70 mph Thursday night into Friday morning.

* Relative Humidity...minimums of 5 to 10 percent. Poor overnight recoveries.

* Impacts...If fire ignition occurs, conditions may be favorable for rapid fire spread and extreme fire behavior which would threaten life and property.

* AFFECTED AREAS: LOS ANGELES COUNTY MOUNTAINS / ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST ... VENTURA COUNTY MOUNTAINS / LOS PADRES NATIONAL FOREST

Instructions:

A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now....or will shortly. A combination of strong winds...low relative humidity...and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior. Use extreme caution with potential fire ignition sources.