ROCHESTER, N.Y. — I think you will agree the pictures and video coming out of Los Angeles are difficult to watch.

The scale of the devastation is hard to comprehend.  Remember, what is happening in LA is very similar to what transpired in Maui, Hawaii with wildfires becoming an urban firestorm due to high winds and extremely dry conditions.

The atmospheric conditions are very similar to what happened last week. It is the same Santa Ana winds which are created by a high-pressure system located east of the Sierra Mountains. That air moves down to the high desert where relative humidity is only about 10% or less and dries the air even more. The desert air filters down through the canyons and – almost like water going through a funnel – it  accelerates dramatically as it drops in elevation. California has a long history of Santa Ana winds, but what is unusual about this event is that the high winds have been making it of all the way to the Pacific coast.

Obviously this will be an ongoing issue for the communities of southern California. It appears this threat (a red flag warning) will continue for another 48 to 72 hours for Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties.  Winds will likely not be quite as strong as last week, but still pushing upwards of 40 to 50 miles per hour.

That means more of the same delayed fire containment and erratic fire behavior.