Red Flag Warning Ahead In Agoura Hills

AGOURA HILLS, CA — Santa Ana winds and unseasonably warm weather will make a return to Agoura Hills this week, bringing the region a taste of warm winter weather but also raising the risk of wildfires with gusty and dry conditions.

A Red Flag Warning will be in effect in Agoura Hills, along with the Santa Monica Mountains Recreational Area, Los Angeles County mountains, Angeles National Forest, and the Santa Clarita and San Fernando valleys, from 4 p.m. Thursday to 4 p.m. Friday.

We are in for some winds & fire weather conditions. N/NE winds will increase tonight, and the air will really dry out Thurs. Red Flag Warning is out for Ventura & L.A. co mtns & valleys starting at 4pm Thurs. Drive with caution and avoid creating sparks! #firewx #santaana #cawx pic.twitter.com/yMcslseRHL
— NWS Los Angeles (@NWSLosAngeles) January 14, 2021

Currently, much of western metro Los Angeles is under a wind and fire advisory.

Winds began building Wednesday afternoon in some areas, most notably in the western San Fernando Valley, where gusts of 35 to 45 mph were reported, according to the National Weather Service. A high pressure system was building and advancing into the area, and forecasters said it will bring warm and dry conditions, pushing humidity levels down starting Thursday afternoon, possibly into the 5 to 10% range.

The dry conditions are expected to continue into at least Saturday.

"North to northeast winds will form over Los Angeles and Ventura counties on Thursday and continue through Friday, with dry air descending over the region starting late Thursday afternoon or night," according to the NWS. "Along with persistently dry fuels, this combination of wind and humidity will result in critical fire weather conditions over the valleys and mountains of Los Angeles and Ventura counties Thursday afternoon through Friday afternoon, with a chance of needing to be extended into Saturday. There is also a chance that the coastal areas will need to be added."

Wind gusts of 30 to 50 mph are anticipated across much of the affected areas, according to the NWS.

Forecasters said winds are expected to die down Saturday night through Sunday, but they'll pick up again Monday through Tuesday or Wednesday, "with a growing potential for moderate to strong winds and red flag conditions."

Agoura Hills will see a high of 82 Thursday, 84 Friday, 82 Saturday, and 81 Sunday. Coastal areas, which were seeing temperatures in the low 70s on Wednesday, could hit the 80s by Thursday, according to the NWS.

— City News Service and Patch editor Michael Wittner contributed to this report.