Raging flames driven by a fierce windstorm threatened hillside homes in Los Angeles on Tuesday, as Southern California braced for the strongest winds in more than a decade.
Gusts of up to 100 miles per hour were forecast through lunchtime Wednesday, threatening to down trees, knock out power and fuel wildfires across a wide region.
A fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood had grown to 20 acres on Tuesday morning, the Los Angeles Fire Department said. Plumes of smoke shrouded a ridge in the area west of downtown Los Angeles, and the blaze forced the closure of a portion of Pacific Coast Highway.
“We’ve already seen gusts between 50 and 70 m.p.h. across many areas,” said Rich Thompson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “It’s only going to get stronger through the day.”
Southern California Edison, the region’s electricity provider, said it was preparing to cut power to as many as 419,000 customers in the southern half of the state as a pre-emptive measure to avoid wildfires sparking under high wind conditions.
Forecasters are particularly concerned about mountainside communities in the San Fernando Valley, along the 118 and 210 highways, as well as some cities in the nearby San Gabriel Valley. Those areas are expected to receive intense winds and are often under threat of fire.
Last month, a fire in the Malibu area that threatened Pepperdine University and forced students to shelter in place was stoked by the same Santa Ana winds. Officials are more concerned this time around because the windstorm will affect a broader, more populated region.
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