Southern California braces for high winds and heightened wildfire risk

All of Los Angeles County is under a dust and ash alert as strong Santa Ana winds blow through the Eaton and Palisades burn scars. 

The air quality advisory is expected to last through 10 p.m. local time Tuesday, CBS Los Angeles reported. The alert from the South Coast Air Quality Management District also affected counties northeast of L.A.

Windblown ash is typically too large to be detected by the instruments used to determine the air quality index, or AQI, officials said. They do not influence the current “good to moderate” rating. 

“In short, although the AQI may show green, it is best to reduce exposure as the forecasted high wind events can carry ash throughout the region from the active Palisades and Eaton wildfires as well as Hurst, Kenneth, Line, Airport, and Bridge fire burn scars,” the agency said.

Read more from CBS Los Angeles here.

Following President Trump’s inauguration on Monday, former Vice President Kamala Harris returned to Los Angeles County, making a stop to help distribute food and thank fire crews in Altadena.

Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff have a home in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles that will serve as their primary residence. The neighborhood is not far from the wildfires.

Read more from CBS Los Angeles here. 

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order Monday to expedite debris removal from recent fire areas, bolster flood defenses and stabilize hillsides ahead of anticipated rainfall.

Burn scars in areas of the Eaton Fire and Palisades Fire are of top concern, as the risk for mudslides, landslides, flash floods and debris flow is high in fire zones. The National Weather Service says there is a developing chance of rain this weekend.

Cal Fire reported Monday morning that over 10,000 structures were destroyed or damaged during the Eaton Fire, and in the Palisades Fire 6,051 structures were destroyed and 788 structures were damaged. Fire crews are still working to increase containment on both fires.

Read more from CBS Los Angeles here.

Photos taken Monday show how destructive the Eaton Fire has been in the Altadena community of Los Angeles County.

One photo shows two destroyed homes in front of a group of trees.

Another photo shows a razed area near mountains and foothills.

 A third image shows part of a neighborhood completely devastated by the fire.

A fourth shows a burned-out vehicle in a hard-hit area covered with ash.

Firefighters quickly knocked down a half-acre grass fire in L.A.’s Griffith Park.

Aerial footage showed crews on the ground and firefighting aircraft quickly getting the blaze under control.

Read more here.

Authorities in the L.A. area relaxed more evacuation orders and warnings Monday for the Palisades and Eaton fires.

The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department posted the changes online for Altadena, which was devastated by the Eaton Fire. In some areas, evacuation warnings were lifted. Other areas had evacuation orders changed to evacuation warnings, and more areas had evacuation orders changed to “soft closures,” which means the area is open to authorities and residents with ID but closed to the general public.

Fire officials also said some residents in the Palisades fire zone could now access the area identified as TOP-U007-A on an online map.

An L.A. area utility said thousands of homes and businesses had their power shut off for the dangerous wind conditions expected Monday.

As of late Monday morning local time, Southern California Edison said on its website that power was shut off for more than 5,800 customers because of the heightened wildfire risk. The utility said that’s less than 1% of its 5 million customers.

Most of the outages were in Los Angeles County and San Bernardino County, northeast of L.A.

Additional outages were being considered for over 247,000 other homes and businesses, which the utility said was just under 5% of its customers.

Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell urged people to not wait for an evacuation order to leave their home.

“If you receive a warning, please leave,” McDonnell said during a news briefing Monday. “Do not wait for a mandatory evacuation order.”

The police chief encouraged people to prepare evacuation plans and pay attention to notifications about the expected strong winds that could spark and spread new fires.

“The difference could be life or death,” McDonnell said.

Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said the extreme winds forecast for the area were expected to peak Monday night into Tuesday morning.

Gusts in the mountains could reach up to 100 mph, Crowley said.

Crowley warned that the combination of high winds, low humidity and dry vegetation could ignite additional fires.

Fire engines from local, regional and state agencies were deployed to high-risk parts of Los Angeles and the surrounding area to respond to new fires, Crowley said.

“I urge everyone to stay alert as the danger has not yet passed,” Crowley said.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said Monday that firefighters were working to prevent flare-ups and officials were ramping up efforts to recover from the devastating fires.

“Angelenos, it is hopeful that we are about 48 hours away from turning the page on this particular emergency, but until then, we’re going to do everything we can to keep you safe,” Bass said during a news conference.

The mayor continued to urge people to follow evacuation orders.

She also said rebuilding areas will take time.

Monday’s conditions were expected to be worse than they were last week, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service said.

James White, the weather service’s incident meteorologist for the Eaton Fire, noted the “particularly dangerous situation” warning for Monday was the third one issued this month for the L.A. area. White said the weather service uses the term when conditions are “truly exceptional or dangerous.”

The other two warnings were for when the wildfires broke out Jan. 7 and last Monday.

“This event today is going to fall between those two,” White said. “It’s not going to be as long or as severe as Jan. 7, but there are strong indications that it will be stronger and more widespread than what happened on Jan. 13.”

People in the Los Angeles area were warned Monday to be prepared if they suddenly need to evacuate from their homes.

“You should be prepared to leave immediately,” Daron Wyatt, a spokesperson for the agencies responding to the Eaton Fire, said during a news conference. “It’s not the time to start thinking about it, you need to be prepared.”

Wyatt urged people to sign up for emergency alerts, which they can do on a few Los Angeles County websites.

As of Monday morning, the Palisades Fire was 59% contained and had scorched 37 square miles, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.

The Eaton Fire was 87% contained and had burned over 14 square miles.

The National Weather Service issued another “particularly dangerous situation” warning starting Monday in Southern California.

“Take action now to prepare your home and loved ones for another round of EXTREME WIND and FIRE WEATHER,” the weather service said on social media.

Peak winds of at least 60 mph were expected in the mountains and hills and 50 mph winds were expected in the coasts and valleys.

Read more here.

Two people from Oregon were arrested for allegedly impersonating firefighters inside of the Palisades fire zone over the weekend, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Read more here.