Critical fire conditions are expected to continue through Friday. But rain could be on the way this weekend. Here's what to know.

Not only do these winds accelerate the speed and spread of the fires, they also affect how the fires are fought. The strong winds can make it dangerous to fly aircraft used for containing the fires.

Meteorologists said there was a chance the winds would be as severe as those that fueled the Palisades and Eaton fires, but that different locations would likely be affected.

The Santa Anas are expected to be most powerful Monday night into Tuesday. Fire services across the region say they are ready.

After a much quieter weekend, Southern California is experiencing a major shift in the weather pattern. The winds will peak Monday evening and overnight but extend into Tuesday morning.

Just a few years after the ozone hole was detected via satellite, the industrialized nations of the world, meeting in Montreal in 1987, adopted what is known as the Montreal Protocol.

The Santa Ana winds are dry, powerful winds that blow down the mountains toward the Southern California coast. The region sees about 10 Santa Ana wind events a year on average, typically occurring from fall into January. When conditions are dry, as they are right now, these winds can become a severe fire hazard.

As of Jan 21, 2025, firefighters in southern California, USA, were still struggling to extinguish two of the largest wildfires the state has ever seen. The Palisades fire broke out in the western suburbs of Los Angeles,

Satellite imagery has captured smoke billowing from wildfires south of the border, fueled by similar conditions to the devastating blazes in Los Angeles.

The Eaton and Palisades fires have consumed more than 37,000 acres of homes, businesses and landmarks in Altadena and Pacific Palisades.

The destruction in parts of Altadena, a few miles to the west of Sierra Madre, and Pacific Palisades, which had burned in a separate fire on the other side of Los Angeles, made these areas appear bombed out.

Firefighters made progress on the more than 10,000-acre Hughes Fire Friday, which sent thousands fleeing after sparking near the Los Angeles County community of Castaic a day earlier.