Red Flag Warning Issued For Inland Orange County

ORANGE COUNTY, CA — A Red Flag warning is in effect in inland Orange County from 2 p.m. Thursday to 6 p.m. Friday due to Santa Ana winds and low humidity, according to the National Weather Service in San Diego.

The warning, which is issued for weather events that may result in extreme fire activity within the next 24 hours, spans most of inland Orange County, the Santa Ana Mountains, San Bernardino and Riverside County Valleys, the Inland Empire, and through the San Bernardino County Mountains, and more. See a list of affected communities here.

In Orange County, winds of 45 to 65 mph are expected in the Santa Ana Mountains, Trabuco Canyon, and parts of Mission Viejo and Lake Forest, near where the Silverado fire burned in the fall. Urban areas and the coast may see slower winds of 20 to 30 mph. Winds are expected to slow down after Friday, according to National Weather Service officials.

Humidity is expected to fall from 10 to 15 percent Thursday, and 8 t0 12 percent Friday. Inland highs in the 70s through the weekend and dry vegetation are also adding to the threat.

Ready.gov recommends wearing protective clothing while outside, closing doors, shutting off natural gas, propane, or fuel supplies, connecting garden hoses to the outdoor water faucet to fill pools, hot tubs, garbage cans, tubs, or other large containers with water, and making sure gas-powered water pumps are fueled and ready, among other tips.

As of Wednesday, Capt. Greg Barta of the Orange County Fire Authority told the Orange County Register that they do not expect to increase staffing, but will remain fully staffed throughout Thanksgiving.

No power outages have been reported in Orange County as of Wednesday at 4 p.m., according to Southern California Edison data. Still, the Los Angeles Times reported that as many as 76,000 customers in communities from Hemet to Ventura could lose power.

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