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After two days of record-breaking heat, the Bay Area is starting to cool down but still can’t shake the soot and smoke that has lingered since wildfires engulfed the region several weeks ago.
And thanks to strong, dry Diablo winds, some areas of the region are bracing for more extreme fire conditions as firefighters continue battling new raging blazes.
The combination of wildfires and anticipated strong winds caused PG&E to cut power to nearly 172,000 customers in Northern California on Monday evening as a precaution to avoid sparking more fires. A red flag warning is in effect for most of the North Bay mountains and East Bay until mid-day Wednesday. And, a Spare the Air Alert due to unhealthy air quality in the region has been extended through Wednesday.
“The oppressive and record-breaking heat has come to an end, but there’s plenty of smoke in the atmosphere coming from the August Complex Fire up in Northern California,” said Roger Gass, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, who said northerly to northeasterly winds are pushing that smoke down into the Bay Area. “That’s likely to be an issue over the next 24 hours before we see a gradual shift in winds.”
Offshore winds Tuesday and Wednesday of 25-35 mph with peak gusts expected to reach 65 mph in high elevations, coupled with dry conditions and low humidity, will create extreme fire conditions that could worsen the spread of fires, Gass said.
The Diablo winds — which the National Weather Service dubbed the “first significant offshore wind event of the season” — come as wildfires have already torched more than 2.2 million acres in California this year, surpassing the state record of 1.96 million acres set in 2018, with at least two months left in the state’s typical fire season. To date, the fires have killed at least eight people and destroyed more than 3,300 structures, according to Cal Fire.
Stratus and fog on the coastline to start your Tuesday morning. However, it'll be temporary since gusty north to northeast winds with drier air is arriving from interior California. Travis AFB now reporting north wind gusting to 28 mph and a drier air boundary has pushed through. pic.twitter.com/ASlGTHdc5S
— NWS Bay Area 🌉 (@NWSBayArea) September 8, 2020
Fires are burning up and down the state — from the Northern California Sierra Nevada to San Diego — stretching resources and personnel thin and making it more difficult for firefighters to stop the spread of the blazes. As of Tuesday, approximately 14,000 firefighters are battling 25 major wildfires across the state and Cal Fire says it has “increased staffing in preparation for critical fire weather.”
The Oak Fire in Mendocino County, which broke out Monday between Ukiah and Laytonville, has grown quickly, forcing evacuations and prompting the closure of a portion of Highway 101 Tuesday morning.
Near Big Sur, the Dolan Fire doubled in size overnight, torching more than 73,000 acres, according to Cal Fire. On Tuesday morning, 15 U.S. Forest Service firefighters were trapped and forced to use their fire shelters when the blaze ran over them and destroyed the Nacimiento Fire Station. Three firefighters were injured, and at least one of them is in critical condition, according to a virtual Forest Service news briefing.
The Creek Fire, which has burned nearly 153,000 acres in the Sierra Nevada northeast of Fresno and is 0% contained, remains the most concerning at the moment.
Over the weekend, more than 200 people were airlifted from the forest to safety after the inferno exploded in size and cut off evacuation routes. During a press briefing Monday evening, U.S. Forest Service Supervisor Dean Gould called the fire an “unprecedented disaster” for Fresno County, adding that this fire was the “most aggressive” that had ever occurred in the area.
More rescues by helicopter were underway Tuesday morning for Sierra National Forest visitors trapped by the fast-moving fire.
Meanwhile, the LNU Complex Fire — the third-largest wildfire in state history — continues to endanger residents there despite its 91% containment. New evacuation orders and warnings were issued Monday night near Healdsburg after the fire jumped containment areas in the Russian River area of Sonoma County.
“We have substantially made progress,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said during a news briefing Tuesday. “But with the wind events that we’re experiencing currently and that we’re anticipating over the coming days, we have to be mindful that even with high containment number those fires are anything but behind us.”
Acknowledging the potential for the winds to take down utility poles, damage its infrastructure and spark additional blazes, PG&E had shut off power to 167,000 customers in 21 counties in Northern California as of 6 p.m. Tuesday. Kern County was expected to join the list at 7 p.m.
The utility will work to inspect the de-energized lines and restore power “within 12 daylight hours” of receiving the all-clear, which most counties are expected to receive Wednesday morning, said Mark Quinlan, senior director of emergency preparedness and response for PG&E, at a news conference Tuesday evening. The process is already underway in Humboldt, Siskiyou, Calaveras and Tuolumne counties.
“Our employees have already been taking action today to segment the distribution system into smaller chunks so that we can incrementally and concurrently restore those distribution segments and our transmission lines very safely and very quickly,” Quinlan said.
No other major wind events are expected in the next seven days, said PG&E meteorologist Scott Strenfel.
For Public Safety due to Severe Weather, PG&E has Begun Process of Turning Off Power in High Fire-Threat Areas – Strong Winds Expected to Last Through Early Wednesday Morning https://t.co/AOlcxoOAy8 pic.twitter.com/1SdvuxH6FE
— Pacific Gas & Electric (@PGE4Me) September 8, 2020
Air quality across most of the Bay Area will remain moderate to unhealthy for sensitive groups through Wednesday, with some areas of the East Bay — such as Livermore and Antioch — experiencing the worst air in the region that will be unhealthy for anyone to breathe.
Offering a bit of bright news, the smoke from nearby wildfires will aid in tapering off heat in the region starting Tuesday and continuing throughout the week.
Downtown Oakland, for instance, which set a new record-high temperature Monday of 96 degrees, will see a high-temperature drop of nearly 20 degrees by Thursday — to 77 degrees.
Staff writer Jason Green contributed to this report.
