Southern California winds subsiding, but forecasters warn of ‘rapid fire growth and extreme fire behavior’

Most areas of the region are under a red flag warning until 6 p.m. Thursday, for parts of LA and Ventura counties that warning is in place until Friday evening.

Winds that have battered Southern California are expected to die down — mostly.

A red flag warning issued this week because of low humidity, dry brush and strong winds will remain in effect until Thursday evening, Oct. 31, for much of Southern California, but for parts of LA County, near where the Tick fire burned, the warning is in place through 6 p.m. Friday.

The red flag warning will remain in effect for interior Los Angeles County and Ventura County mountains and the Santa Clarita Valley.

Although subsiding from the pounding gusts of one day earlier, the wind will still be strong during the day and continue to make firefighting efforts in the region’s many blazes a challenge.

The warning was expected to be in effect until 6 p.m. for most areas, except Orange County where it ended earlier.

“This will continue to be an extreme event, with damaging wind gusts expected in the mountains, and a long duration of very low humidity,” according to the National Weather Service forecast statement. “If there is a fire ignition, it would exhibit with very rapid fire growth and extreme fire behavior.”

In Los Angeles and Ventura counties, where the Getty fire and the Easy fire continue to burn, gusts will peak at 50 mph to 60 mph.

Meanwhile in the footprint of the Hillside fire in San Bernardino and the 46 and Hill fires in Riverside County, wind levels are expected at 30 mph to 40 mph, forecasters say.

The single-digit humidity levels across Southern California are expected to stay until at least Friday but by then the strength will have weakened.