santa ana wind event expected to bring dangerous fire conditions to malibu this week
The National Weather Service (NWS) forecasts a Santa Ana Wind event will impact the Malibu area Wednesday, December 23 through Saturday, December 26.
A Fire Weather Watch is in effect from 10:00 AM Wednesday, December 23 through 3:00 PM Thursday, December 24 across much of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties due to gusty Santa Ana winds and low humidities.
Dangerous fire conditions begin on Tuesday, December 22 with gusty wind and very low humidity. Santa Ana winds increasing Wednesday morning, peaking Wednesday afternoon into Wednesday night. Wind for LA/Ventura mountains is expected to be 25-40 mph with gusts 50-60 mph. LA/Ventura valleys/coasts 20-35 mph with gusts 40-55 mph (strongest in Santa Clarita Valley, eastern Ventura valleys, northern San Fernando Valley). Offshore winds are expected to diminish considerably in all areas by Thursday afternoon.
Relative humidity is expected to drop to around 15% by late Wednesday morning, falling to 3 to 10% Wednesday afternoon into Thursday.
NWS forecasts a slight chance of showers across the mountains by late Thursday afternoon/evening.
Southern California Edison (SCE) notified the City on December 20 that it was monitoring for a potential Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) in Malibu, but on December 21, it removed the Malibu circuits from the list. However, due to the dangerous fire weather conditions forecast, Malibu should be prepared for PSPS or wind-related power outages. See local National Weather Service forecasts.
Any power outages will not cancel the drive-through COVID-19 testing that the City and Malibu Medical Group are offering Tuesday, December 22 and Tuesday, December 29, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM at Malibu City Hall. You must be in line by 2PM. Pre-registration required. See all of the testing information and registration link on the City website.
Even if no Red Flag Warning has been issued, windy weather and very low humidities continue for the Malibu area, so residents should remain vigilant, monitor local weather forecasts, watch for emergency alerts and be prepared for potential power outages, malfunctioning traffic signals, debris in the roadway, downed power lines, fires and evacuations.
Get wildfire preparedness information with the City's Emergency Survival Guide
See the SCE Circuit Maps
See current SCE outages and sign up for alerts about outages on the SCE website
See SCE’s post-PSPS reports, and other PSPS information on the SCE website
All current City emergency alerts are posted on the alerts page
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