Several wildfires burning across southern California may spread more before being brought under control, based on troubling forecasts of more gusty winds early this week.
The wildfires forced tens of thousands to evacuate Los Angeles last week. The blazes are supercharged by extremely dry conditions on the ground and strong winds from the northeast, which caused the infernos to rapidly spread across a densely populated area. Some of the strongest wind gusts that fueled the fires’ spread last week hovered around 100 miles per hour (161 kilometers per hour). The latest weather reports indicate that conditions will remain extremely favorable for wildfire spread through at least midweek.
According to a National Weather Service alert, weather conditions in the area “will again lead to strong gusts across the typically favored areas across coastal southern California today with winds peaking between 40-50mph [64 to 80 km/hr].”
“Conditions are expected to worsen for these locations by Tuesday morning as wind gusts near 70 mph [113 km/hr] will be possible,” the alert added.
Taken in tandem with low humidity across the region and a lack of recent rain, the conditions are primed for wildfires. NWS issued a Particularly Dangerous Situation Red Flag Warning for Los Angeles, Ventura, and Santa Barbara countries that lasts from Monday night through Wednesday morning.
A Red Flag warning “means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now…or will shortly,” according to the NWS. “A combination of strong winds…low relative humidity…and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior.”
According to Cal Fire, there are currently 105 wildfires larger than 10 acres burning across the state. The largest fires by far are the Palisades and Eaton fires in Los Angeles county, which have burned 23,713 acres and 14,117 acres, respectively. The Palisades Fire is currently 14% contained and the Eaton Fire is 33% contained. The Hurst Fire, an 800-acre blaze also in L.A. county, is 89% contained. All the fires began on January 7.
In total, the current wildfire emergencies in California have burned over 40,000 acres, destroyed 12,300 structures, and killed 13 people, Cal Fire reports, though The New York Times has the death toll at 24 and counting.
It’s not a great start to the year, especially considering that wildfire season typically runs from May through November. Though 40,000 acres isn’t much compared to the one million acres of California that burned last year, we’re not even two weeks into January. In addition, the location of the ongoing fires makes them especially hazardous; the 8,000 wildfires that burned last year only caused one fatality and damaged or destroyed 2,148 structures—much lower numbers than this year.
The origin of the fires is still under investigation. Wildfires have plenty of sources, from human activity through to electrocuted birds that burst into flames (seriously).
There are several important steps you can take if you are in an area that could be prone to wildfires. If you want to help with wildfire recovery, resources can be found on the L.A. County website.