Santa Ana winds packing gusts near 70 miles per hour swept through Southern California for a third day Tuesday, fanning brush fires, knocking over big rigs and causing blackouts for thousands of utility customers.
Much of Southern California was under a “red flag” alert for fire danger much of the day because of the fierce, dry winds racing out of the desert toward the ocean, sapping moisture from brush and trees. By evening, the red flag and high wind warnings were allowed to expire as windspeeds declined.
The biggest of several fires to break out during the blustery siege had burned 485 acres of the San Bernardino National Forest about 65 miles east of Los Angeles, said fire spokeswoman Lisa Jones. Authorities lifted a voluntary evacuation for 500 homes in Running Springs as the situation improved.
More than 500 firefighters were on the lines and firefighting aircraft were brought in. The fire was 40 percent contained and was expected to be fully surrounded Thursday, Jones said. One injury was reported.
A small fire in the Simi Valley area of Ventura County west of Los Angeles also drew an air and ground attack.
Trucks with broad, flat sides continued to fare poorly in the winds. Two rigs blew over on highways below the south end of Cajon Pass in San Bernardino County and a third was toppled farther south in Riverside County, said California Highway Patrol officer Rosa Ray. A half-dozen trucks met the same fate Monday in that region.
The seasonal Santa Anas began battering the region on Sunday, created by flow from high pressure over the Great Basin toward low pressure off Southern California, descending and warming as they squeezed through the passes and canyons of the mountain ranges above the metropolitan region.
The National Weather Service said the strongest winds Tuesday blew across a broad corridor from the Antelope Valley, north of Los Angeles, to the coasts of Ventura and Los Angeles counties, with speeds near 70 mph in the mountains. Humidity levels fell to the single digits in some areas.
By afternoon the weakening surface pressure gradient resulted in winds falling below warning thresholds although some gusts continued, the NWS said.
About 2,281 Southern California Edison customers remained without power Tuesday night, spokesman Jeremy Rawitch said. Most outages were in San Gabriel Valley foothill communities and east to San Bernardino County. The winds knocked down 124 power lines and toppled 18 power poles, Rawitch said.
Since the winds arrived Sunday, more than 145,000 customers experienced outages.
The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power reported 15,000 customers lost power overnight but electricty service was restored to all customers by Tuesday night.
California State University, San Bernardino, near the base of the San Bernardino Mountains, closed for a second day because of the winds.
“It’s more of a precaution,” spokesman Joe Gutierrez said. “Yesterday when the winds kicked up, we had some reports of students with skinned knees … and broken windows.”
At Bob Hope Airport in the San Fernando Valley foothill community of Burbank, aircraft were taking off to the north instead of the south because of the high winds, spokesman Victor Gill said.
On Monday, a fire destroyed a home and damaged five others in Tujunga, a foothill area of northeast Los Angeles, and a blaze in suburban La Canada Flintridge forced the evacuation of 15 homes before it was contained.
Topics California
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