Large parts of Southern California were hit with Santa Ana winds Monday in what some meteorologists are saying might be the biggest Santa Ana event this year, with possible public safety power outages for tens of thousands of residents amid elevated concerns about fire dangers.
The National Weather Service in San Diego has issued a wind advisory that will remain in effect until 2 p.m. for portions of the Inland Empire, the coastal mountain slopes for Riverside and San Bernardino counties’ mountains, and the Santa Ana mountains into portions of inland Orange County.
Wind advisories are also in effect through 3 p.m. for the mountains and valleys in Los Angeles and Ventura counties. Gusts of winds could be up to 50 mph or stronger, said David Sweet, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Oxnard.
Monday’s weather is expected to be dry with relatively low humidity, creating elevated to briefly critical fire conditions in parts of Southern California, Sweet said.
Southern California Edison said on its website that wildfire risks because of weather conditions could lead to public safety power shut-offs for nearly 40,000 of its customers across Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino and Ventura counties.
“This seems to be the biggest [Santa Ana event] so far this year,” Casey Oswant, a meteorologist with the San Diego bureau, said.
By 6:30 a.m. Monday, there were gusts of up to 45 mph, particularly in the areas below the San Gorgonio and Cajon passes. Heavy winds were also sweeping through inland Orange County, but they are expected to stay in the foothills, Oswant said.
Fremont Canyon recorded the most aggressive wind gusts at 65 mph around 6 a.m.
“We could see winds strengthen a little bit further and see a few more gusts [of] 50 miles to 55 mph, maybe even 60 mph,” Oswant said. “Things are still going to keep blowing for a few more hours.”
Elsewhere in Southern California, parts of southeastern Ventura County saw winds of around 45 to 50 mph Monday morning, weather experts said. The Los Angeles County mountains, particularly the area around Magic Mountain truck trail, are being blasted with gusts of up to 67 mph, and wind gusts of up to 53 mph hit the Santa Monica Mountains. The valleys are also seeing strong winds, with Browns Canyon recording 57 mph wind speeds and Del Valle experiencing 35 mph gusts.
The winds should peak after sunrise and start to settle after 3 p.m., Sweet said.
The powerful winds raise concerns around fire danger. The Santa Anas, which typically blow most aggressively during the fall months, are known to fuel some of California’s largest fires as strong, dry gusts blow against brush dried from the summer that act as tinder. The Woolsey fire, Los Angeles County’s most destructive blaze, fed off Santa Ana winds in the fall of 2018.
While Monday’s weather is expected to be dry with relatively low humidity, the event is not long enough for a red flag wildfire warning, Sweet said, but meteorologists are monitoring the conditions.
Sweet called Monday’s gusts a moderate event.
