Strong Santa Ana winds will continue to whip Southern California over the next few days, creating what the National Weather Service is calling a “particularly dangerous situation” as firefighters close in on their second week of battling the intense wildfires torching the region.
A wind advisory was already in effect for western Los Angeles County and much of Ventura County in the early morning hours of Jan. 13 as firefighters rushed to contain the deadly Palisades and Eaton fires.
The blazes have scorched more than 37,000 acres and are confirmed to have claimed at least 24 lives to date, with 23 people missing.
The fire burning near the Sylmar area, although yet to prove deadly, has left its mark upon roughly 800 acres but is nearing full containment.
At a Jan. 13 press briefing, local and state officials advised that 5,000 firefighters had been deployed to tame the Palisades fire and another 3,000 to fight the fire burning near Eaton Canyon.
Wind gusts of up to 70 miles per hour are expected to return to the region at 4 a.m. local time on Jan. 14, giving officials and first responders a brief window of time to prepare.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said authorities are “absolutely better prepared” for the incoming weather conditions than they were a week prior.
The fires were first sparked on Jan. 7, when the strong Santa Ana winds combined with warm temperatures and low humidity to create a trifecta of extreme fire weather conditions.
As sustained winds topped 80 miles per hour and gusts reached as high as 100 miles per hour, firefighting aircraft were forced to remain grounded, limiting containment efforts.
Officials said that could be an issue again this week if wind gusts surpass 30 miles per hour or sustained winds top 40 miles per hour.
Red flag warnings have been extended as far north as San Luis Obispo and down to Monte Vista.
However, the mountainous areas to the north and west of Los Angeles are expected to face the fiercest winds, including the western Santa Monica Mountains, western San Gabriel Mountains, Santa Susana Mountains, and those in southern Ventura County, as well as the surrounding valleys.
The corridor along Interstate 5 will be another area to avoid.
Once the winds ramp up, they aren’t expected to die down again until midday on Jan. 15. The result could be another firestorm.
“Areas in the red flag warning ... will have a high risk for large fires with very rapid fire spread, extreme fire behavior, and long-range spotting,” the National Weather Service warned late on Jan. 12.
Still, conditions are not expected to reach the level of destructiveness seen the prior week, when flames fanned by fierce winds leveled much of the upscale Los Angeles neighborhood of Pacific Palisades.
The Palisades Fire, by far the largest of the three remaining blazes, is believed to have caused eight of the confirmed deaths. But officials expect the death toll to rise as they continue to conduct grid searches of razed homes, assisted by cadaver dogs.
Officials also have created an online database of damaged and destroyed homes that evacuees can search. However, Luna warned residents against returning to their homes.
“People are saying, ‘I just want to go look at my house and I want to see what’s left.’ We know that, but we have people literally looking for the remains of your neighbors. Please be patient with us,” he said, noting that there are still safety hazards in the area.
More than 12,000 structures have been destroyed by the fires.
Arson has not been ruled out as a cause.
