...POTENTIAL FOR A VERY WARM AND DRY SANTA ANA WIND EVENT WITH HIGH FIRE DANGER LATE THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY... ON THURSDAY...AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE WILL DIG SOUTHWARD INTO THE GREAT BASIN WHILE AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS OFF THE WEST COAST. INITIALLY...DRY NORTHERLY WINDS WILL IMPACT SAN LUIS OBISPO AND SANTA BARBARA COUNTIES ON THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. AS SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS INTO NEVADA...THE LOW LEVEL FLOW WILL SHIFT TO THE NORTHEAST ACROSS MUCH OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA LATE THURSDAY NIGHT OR FRIDAY MORNING...WITH GUSTY SANTA ANA WINDS FORECASTED TO PERSIST THROUGH SATURDAY. PRELIMINARY INDICATIONS SUGGEST THIS SANTA ANA WIND EVENT WILL BE SLIGHTLY STRONGER AND DRIER THAN OUR LAST EVENT ON FRIDAY. THE FOCUS OF THE OFFSHORE WINDS WILL BE LOS ANGELES AND VENTURA COUNTIES. MOUNTAIN AREAS COULD SEE WIND GUSTS IN THE 40 TO 50 MPH RANGE...WHILE COASTAL AND VALLEY AREAS WILL GENERALLY EXPERIENCE GUSTS BETWEEN 30 AND 40 MPH. THE GUSTY SANTA ANA WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO BRING SIGNIFICANT WARMING AND DRYING TO THE DISTRICT. TEMPERATURES ON FRIDAY AND SATURDAY ARE EXPECTED TO CLIMB INTO THE 90S ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE VALLEYS AND COASTAL PLAIN. MEANWHILE...HUMIDITIES ARE EXPECTED TO LOWER RAPIDLY INTO THE SINGLE DIGITS ON FRIDAY...WITH CONTINUED VERY DRY CONDITIONS INTO SATURDAY. THE COMBINATION OF GUSTY SANTA ANA WINDS WITH VERY LOW HUMIDITIES AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL BRING A SIGNIFICANT THREAT OF CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA LATE THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY. A FIRE WEATHER WATCH HAS ALREADY BEEN POSTED FOR MUCH OF LOS ANGELES AND VENTURA COUNTIES. EXTREMELY DRY FUEL CONDITIONS IN PLACE WOULD ALLOW FOR LARGE AND RAPID FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL IF WINDS AND DRY AIR DEVELOP AS PROJECTED LATE IN THE WEEK. RESIDENTS OF SOUTHWEST CALIFORNIA ARE URGED TO STAY TUNED TO THE LATEST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATEMENTS AND WARNINGS ON THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION. $$ GOMBERG/SMITH
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