Flame-fanning Santa Ana winds howling in Southern California
By
Renee Duff, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Dec 8, 2020 8:47 AM EDT
As we see an increase in destructive wildfires throughout California, a construction company is betting that fire-resistant steel homes could be the future of construction in the state.
Southern California only got a brief reprieve from high winds this past weekend as yet another Santa Ana event has begun to take shape. Now, with blazes already fanned into existence from the last round of windy weather, forecasters say the gusty conditions into Wednesday have the potential to be even more troublesome.
Red flag warnings remain in effect from the southern Sierra Nevada into Southern California. While Northern California was also under red flag warnings at the beginning of the week, these have been allowed to expire due to winds lessening in that part of the state.
The high winds that began on Monday forced the closure of a several COVID-19 testing sites in Ventura County, according to KABC-TV.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
CalFire urged Californians last Friday to make sure they have an emergency supply kit readily accessible and up-to-date as the fire danger continues. By doing so, residents can save valuable minutes in the event of a sudden evacuation.
A firefighter battles the Bond Fire in Silverado, Calif., Thursday, Dec. 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)
Winds ramped up on Sunday night across Northern California and have since followed suit across Southern California. Hell Hole Canyon in San Diego County recorded a wind gust of 82 mph Monday evening.
The highest wind gusts will continue across Southern California through Tuesday, though locally breezy conditions are forecast to persist into the middle of the week.
The gusty winds are being generated as an area of high pressure builds across the Great Basin and funnels air from the interior West to the Southern California coast.
The proximity between this high and a storm settling off the coast could give the intensity of the winds a boost, due to the difference in pressure between these two systems. When there is a large difference in pressure over a relatively small geographical area, winds become strong. This is basically the atmosphere's way of trying to balance itself out.
Frequent gusts of 40-60 mph are likely to occur in the wind-prone areas, with higher gusts expected to funnel through the northeast- to southwest-orientated canyons and passes. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 90 mph is possible.
"This will result in erratic behavior for ongoing fires and the threat will remain very high for the potential of new fires being started," AccuWeather Lead Long-Range Meteorologist Paul Pastelok said.
Along with the high fire threat, the wind gusts can also be locally strong enough to cause some damage to trees and power lines, especially in canyons and passes where the wind gets funneled on its way to the coast.
Live power lines that are downed can also be sources of sparks that may ignite a wildfire.
In preparation for last week's wind event, Southern California utility companies shut off power to more than 100,000 customers.
On Sunday, San Diego Gas & Electric notified approximately 50,000 customers that power shutoffs would be possible from Monday night into Wednesday, depending on the severity of the winds. By Monday night, the utility company had shut off power to approximately 14,000 customers.
Although winds are forecast to ease Wednesday, yet another round of gusty conditions are possible by the end of the week.
With no precipitation in sight across the region, especially for Southern California, into at least the middle of December, AccuWeather meteorologists anticipate many more days of elevated fire danger across the region. This includes just about every day of this week.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo
News / Severe Weather
Flame-fanning Santa Ana winds howling in Southern California
By Renee Duff, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Dec 8, 2020 8:47 AM EDT
As we see an increase in destructive wildfires throughout California, a construction company is betting that fire-resistant steel homes could be the future of construction in the state.
Southern California only got a brief reprieve from high winds this past weekend as yet another Santa Ana event has begun to take shape. Now, with blazes already fanned into existence from the last round of windy weather, forecasters say the gusty conditions into Wednesday have the potential to be even more troublesome.
Red flag warnings remain in effect from the southern Sierra Nevada into Southern California. While Northern California was also under red flag warnings at the beginning of the week, these have been allowed to expire due to winds lessening in that part of the state.
The high winds that began on Monday forced the closure of a several COVID-19 testing sites in Ventura County, according to KABC-TV.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
CalFire urged Californians last Friday to make sure they have an emergency supply kit readily accessible and up-to-date as the fire danger continues. By doing so, residents can save valuable minutes in the event of a sudden evacuation.
A firefighter battles the Bond Fire in Silverado, Calif., Thursday, Dec. 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)
Winds ramped up on Sunday night across Northern California and have since followed suit across Southern California. Hell Hole Canyon in San Diego County recorded a wind gust of 82 mph Monday evening.
The highest wind gusts will continue across Southern California through Tuesday, though locally breezy conditions are forecast to persist into the middle of the week.
The gusty winds are being generated as an area of high pressure builds across the Great Basin and funnels air from the interior West to the Southern California coast.
The proximity between this high and a storm settling off the coast could give the intensity of the winds a boost, due to the difference in pressure between these two systems. When there is a large difference in pressure over a relatively small geographical area, winds become strong. This is basically the atmosphere's way of trying to balance itself out.
Frequent gusts of 40-60 mph are likely to occur in the wind-prone areas, with higher gusts expected to funnel through the northeast- to southwest-orientated canyons and passes. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 90 mph is possible.
"This will result in erratic behavior for ongoing fires and the threat will remain very high for the potential of new fires being started," AccuWeather Lead Long-Range Meteorologist Paul Pastelok said.
Along with the high fire threat, the wind gusts can also be locally strong enough to cause some damage to trees and power lines, especially in canyons and passes where the wind gets funneled on its way to the coast.
Live power lines that are downed can also be sources of sparks that may ignite a wildfire.
Related:
In preparation for last week's wind event, Southern California utility companies shut off power to more than 100,000 customers.
On Sunday, San Diego Gas & Electric notified approximately 50,000 customers that power shutoffs would be possible from Monday night into Wednesday, depending on the severity of the winds. By Monday night, the utility company had shut off power to approximately 14,000 customers.
Although winds are forecast to ease Wednesday, yet another round of gusty conditions are possible by the end of the week.
With no precipitation in sight across the region, especially for Southern California, into at least the middle of December, AccuWeather meteorologists anticipate many more days of elevated fire danger across the region. This includes just about every day of this week.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo