ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Southern California is burning! This reminds me of the horrific fires at Maui, Hawaii some 17 months ago. Los Angeles County and surrounding communities are under a state of emergency. Evacuations are ongoing from early this week as they try to stay ahead of this largely unpredictable wildfire. Remember, two main ingredients produce these kinds of conditions. First, are the very dry conditions which are fuel for the fire, and second, the high winds which fan the flames and launch the embers great distances to start new fires.

For California, this atmospheric event is called the Santa Ana winds. In this particular case, high pressure is located to the north (clockwise winds) and low pressure is located to the south (counterclockwise winds). This creates a pin-wheel effect that funnels a wind circulation right through the mountains of California. These winds come down through the gullies and valleys at a high rate of speed. That air then heats up and dries out as it descends in elevation. These winds have been exceptionally high with gusts close to 50 miles per hour at Los Angeles Airport, but the community of Malibu has reached 66 miles per hour. In addition, several locations in the San Gabriel Mountains had speeds well over 90 miles per hour.

It is not unusual to have the Santa Ana wind in different portions of California, but what is different is the strong winds are just about reaching the Pacific Ocean with a much greater population density.