Daily Dose: Fire Warnings

Santa Ana Wind Conditions

Mayor Jerry Sanders and San Diego fire Chief Javier Mainar warned San Diego county to prepare for Santa Ana wind conditions over the next couple of days that could make the region ripe for wildfires.   

They were joined at a news conference by National Weather Service meteorologist Alex Tardy, who said it will be very hot Wednesday and Thursday, with 30-40 mph winds from the northeast gusting through canyons in the area.   

The more extreme winds that accompanied the firestorms of 2003 and 2007, which devastated large swaths of the county, are not expected, he said.   

Nevertheless, they urged residents to take all necessary precautions, including cutting back brush within 100 feet of residences.

"We have some potentially explosive conditions in San Diego County with lots of dead vegetation," Sanders said. "It doesn't take much effort and it might pay dividends that are impossible to measure in dollars and lives.''   

Mainar said a fire in the northeastern part of the county broke out nearly two weeks ago and rapidly grew to 2,000 acres without the presence of strong winds.

-City News Service 

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