Strong winds return to Southern California; crews on high alert

Strong winds appeared to be blowing ash from the Eaton Fire over communities near Sierra Madre, helicopter reporter Gabe Santos reported.

Strong winds appeared to be blowing ash from the Eaton Fire over communities near Sierra Madre, helicopter reporter Gabe Santos reported.

Residents are advised to stay indoors if possible and wear a mask when outdoors.

While Santa Ana winds will clear smoke, forecasters say it will carry toxic ash to areas south and west of the burn zones. Although ash can travel hundreds of miles, the highest impacted cities are those closest and downwind.

For the Eaton Fire that includes La Canada, La Crescenta, Glendale and other parts of the San Fernando Valley. The National Weather Service says much of the Palisades' ash will be carried out to sea, although nearby coastal communities may be impacted. Neighborhoods near the Kenneth and Hurst fires may also see ash blowing.

Monday's red-flag warning is a PDS, which stands for "particularly dangerous situation." But what does that mean? An NWS meteorologist explains.

"Ultimately every situation is different but for all of these if a fire were to develop it has the potential to grow explosively," said Dr. Ariel Cohen, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

A PDS is for areas already under red-flag warnings. This week's PDS warning includes western portions of L.A. County, Ventura, parts of the San Fernando Valley and even extends up the 5 Freeway.

"We're already seeing these damaging wind gusts setting up across the area. It's already being realized," Cohen said.

NWS Los Angeles issued its first two PDS warnings in 2020. Then came two years of near-record rainfall and extensive vegetation growth.

So why are there so many PDS alerts this year? The recent dry spell, available fuels and strong winds all together form an extremely dangerous combination.

"All of that fuel was drying out and available to burn," Cohen said. "We have winds that dry the fuels out further and without precipitation again it's a very volatile situation."

A small grass fire erupted in the Granada Hills area near the 405 Freeway.

Northbound lanes of the 405 were closed as crews put out flames. The fire was contained after burning three acres.

A small grass erupted in the Granada Hills area near the 405 Freeway.

In a year that is less than three weeks old, Southern California is already bracing for its third extreme wind event, and that has fire officials scrambling to make sure extra staffing is on the clock and in the right places.

LAFD has increased its extra staffing from what it had on Jan. 7, the day the Palisades and Eaton fires exploded. In the hours before those fires, the department had 15 extra-manned engines and 14 pre-deployed engines. On Monday, they had boosted the numbers to 64 extra-manned engines and 33 pre-deployed engines.

"To prepare for these winds, the LAFD has deployed all available resources and strategically positioned fire patrols, fire engines in the high-risk areas across the city of Los Angeles," said Crowley at a news conference Monday morning.

Where crews are pre-positioned matters as well. L.A. City Fire currently has 25 fire engines in the Palisades area, with extra crews standing by at fire stations in Shadow Hills, Woodland Hills, West L.A., and Hollywood.

The L.A. County Fire Department currently has 5,175 firefighters assigned to the Palisades and Eaton fires, with extra Strike Teams pre-deployed to Agoura Hills, Pacoima and La Canada.

The distribution of crews is something both fire departments don't take lightly.

"There's a lot of thought and decisions that have to come into play as to where we can properly place them so they can be utilized in the here and now," Crowley says.

An arson suspect was arrested in connection to a brush fire in Griffith Park after firefighters quickly put out the small blaze.