Red Flag Warning Issued In Malibu

MALIBU, CA — A fire weather watch is going into effect in Malibu from 8 a.m. Wednesday through 3 p.m. Thursday, along with much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

Charmlee Wilderness Park and Trancas Canyon Park are temporarily closed.

The Red Flag Warning is in effect for the Santa Monica Mountains, Los Angeles County Mountains,the Angeles National Forest, the coastal region stretching into downtown Los Angeles and the Santa Clarita, San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys.

The National Weather service said that gusty winds of 50-60 mph in the mountains and gusts of up to 55 mph on the coast, combined with low humidity rates, are creating dangerous fire conditions. Relative humidity is expected to drop to around 15 percent by late Wednesday morning, and fall to 3 to 10 percent into Thursday.

The bulk of Orange County will also be under a red flag warning during the same hours, with wind gusts of 50 to 60 mph anticipated in Santa Ana Mountain canyons, and humidity levels of 7 to 12%. Whenever high winds are forecast, Southern California Edison customers in affected areas could potentially have their power temporarily turned off as part of an effort to prevent energized electrical lines damaged by gusts and possibly sparking wildfires. Customers can check to see if they are facing a potential Public Safety Power Shutoff by visiting the utility's website at www.sce.com/psps.

Southern California Edison has rescinded a possible public safety power shutoff in Malibu on Dec. 21, but dangerous fire conditions could lead to another. During the last Red Flag Warning in early December, Point Dume lost power twice, along with huge swaths of Ventura County.

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