High winds, low humidity expected to fuel fires through Wednesday: ‘Not looking good’

Santa Ana gusts aren’t going anywhere, as meteorologists expect north-to-northeast winds to pick up Saturday night and continue into Wednesday evening for Southern California’s mountain and foothill communities.

Periods of elevated critical fire weather are expected to peak Saturday night into Sunday and then again Monday night through Tuesday as winds could gust up to more than 75 mph for the eastern part of the mountain ranges in Los Angeles County. Weather forecasters say the turbulent conditions may help push the Eaton fire in the Altadena area farther south.

Our concern is winds picking up tonight and then on Monday through Wednesday,” said National Weather Service meteorlogist Rose Schoenfield. “The general duration of this is not looking good.”

A red flag warning issued for this evening starting at 6 p.m. has been extended to Wednesday night, as well as a fire watch warning. Although Santa Ana wind events will affect the mountain and foothill communities of Ventura and Los Angeles counties, they will likely have a stronger impact for the Santa Susana Mountains and the San Gabriel Mountains.

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Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said his crews were gearing up for another dangerous increase in winds that will, no doubt, cause further challenges for ongoing firefights.

As of Saturday, the Palisades fire was 11% contained and the Eaton fire, which devastated much of Altadena and is now burning mostly in the San Gabriel Mountains, was 15% contained. On Friday, the Palisades fire was 8% contained and the Eaton fire was 3% contained.

Marrone warned that more power shutoffs, initiated to limited potential fire starts from electrical equipment, will likely occur over the next few days.

“Please understand the inevitable public safety power shutoffs that will be implemented prior to this life-threatening Santa Ana wind event are crucial to preventing new fire starts, and that they help save lives,” he said. “Yes they are challenging to deal with, but it’s certainly better than having another fire start.”

On Saturday, Southern California Edison reported that more than 300,000 customers across the region -- about 80,000 in L.A. County -- are under consideration for further power cuts “due to heightened wildfire risk.”

About 20,000 customers across L.A. County remain without power from the planned shutoffs.Don Fregulia, an operations section chief for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said crews responding to the Eaton fire are still dealing with hot spots and flare-ups, including near some neighborhoods.

“We’re using all the tools in our tool box to put this fire out,” Fregulia said. But he admitted this is a long fight: “It’s many days, many weeks of work.”

While the dry weather is expected to last through the middle of the week, Schoenfeld said Thursday could potentially bring a respite, offering a small chance of rain and improving humidities.

“Ideally it would be a rainstorm, but we’ll take what we can get,” Schoenfeld said.