Los Angeles fires rage as high winds set to return this week

After a brief respite from the winds over the weekend, a shifting pressure gradient is set to send bone-dry gusts of up to 113km per hour through foothill communities in Los Angeles and Ventura counties from early Tuesday to Wednesday morning. 

At least two rounds of vicious, dry Santa Ana winds are expected to blast through Southern California early this week, bringing powerful gusts that will challenge fire crews struggling to contain two destructive blazes and likely force thousands more residents to evacuate.

After a brief respite from the winds over the weekend, a shifting pressure gradient is set to send bone-dry gusts of up to 70 miles (113 kilometers) per hour through foothill communities in Los Angeles and Ventura counties from early Tuesday to Wednesday morning.

ADVERTISEMENT CONTINUE READING BELOW

The National Weather Service has issued a “particularly dangerous situation” warning — its most severe alert — for Malibu, the San Fernando Valley, and large portions of Ventura County, due to damaging winds and low humidity. More than 7.7 million people will face critical fire-weather conditions by Monday, the US Storm Prediction Center said in an advisory.

A firefighting helicopter drops water on hotspots during the Palisades Fire in Los Angeles on January 12. Image: Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg

While the upcoming Santa Ana winds are not expected to be as strong as the windstorm that ripped through Los Angeles last week, areas under warning “will have a high risk for large fires with very rapid fire spread,” National Weather Service Lead Forecaster David Gomberg wrote in an update Sunday.

High winds will limit opportunities for firefighters to make progress against the fast-moving Palisades and Eaton fires, which have left at least 24 people dead and consumed more than 12,000 buildings in the Pacific Palisades and Altadena neighborhoods of Los Angeles.

Red flag warnings are in effect through Wednesday evening across a large swath of Southern California, extending from the Santa Clarita Valley into Riverside County. San Diego is also on alert for wildfires fueled by high winds. The gusts are linked to a stagnant pattern of high pressure and low pressure across the West, which has created a natural funnel over Southern California.

The fires are the most devastating natural disaster to hit Los Angeles since the 1994 Northridge earthquake, which killed 57 people, and are expected to rank among the costliest in modern US history. The Palisades and Eaton fires have burned almost 38,000 acres, and are slightly contained.

“It is a disastrous pattern and there is not much chance of it changing,” said Bob Oravec, a senior branch forecaster at the US Weather Prediction Center. “If anything it just looks like it reloads across the West and it looks like it gets worse by the end of the month.”

Most schools will reopen on Monday, with the exception of seven that remain in mandatory evacuation zones, said Alberto M. Carvalho, superintendent of Los Angeles Unified School District. Of those seven, two will have to be completely rebuilt: Palisades Charter Elementary and Marquez Charter Elementary.

ADVERTISEMENT: CONTINUE READING BELOW

Firefighters work during the Palisades Fire near the Mandeville Canyon area of Los Angeles on January 12. Image: Benjamin Fanjoy/Bloomberg

Southern California Edison is prepared to shut off electricity if needed during the next bout of heavy winds, said Cody Tubbs, public affairs director of the power utility. The company has been asked to preserve evidence in connection with the deadly Eaton fire by insurance companies.

Approximately 105,000 residents in the Los Angeles area were still under evacuation orders as of Sunday morning with another 87,000 on warning to leave. On Sunday, President Joe Biden received a briefing on the federal response to the fires from relevant agencies, the White House said.

California’s Office of Emergency Services Director Nancy Ward said Sunday there were engines, fire crews, helicopters, bulldozers and water tenders prepositioned across all of Southern California.

“We’re not out of the woods yet,” Ward said. “We have some very significant fire weather ahead of us.”

© 2025 Bloomberg

Follow Moneyweb’s in-depth finance and business news on WhatsApp here.