Monsoon season thunderstorms in Southern California have brought a temporary cooling to a region that has been battered by triple-digit heat waves, but also sparked new wildfires.
National Weather Service meteorologist Robbie Monroe said the ocean layer is cooling along coastal areas this week. Southern California is expected to see strong temperature differences “from coastal areas to valleys to inland areas,” he added.
Close to the ocean, highs are expected to be in the 60s to 70s, while inland areas like downtown Los Angeles will see temperatures around 80 degrees, and the San Fernando Valley is expected to see temperatures near 90 degrees.
Thunderstorms over the weekend also sparked fires across Southern California, said California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection’s Sacramento Station Battalion Chief Brent Pascua. Kern County fire crews are battling five fires covering 17,915 acres, four of which started Saturday.
“White fire is made of [by lightning], the Rancho fire is suspected to be lightning,” Pascal said. He added that a portion of Interstate 5 near Lost Hills in Kern County was closed but has since reopened to commuters.
A small fire on the riverside was quickly extinguished due to the wet weather. “It’s so small, it’s not even an acre,” Pascal said.
Munro said Southern California could see another heat wave starting this weekend. In interior valleys, people may see temperatures rise above 100 degrees. He warned that the combination of high temperatures and another thunderstorm this weekend could spark more wildfires.
“Any time there’s a thunderstorm, there’s at least a small chance of a fire,” Munro said. “Even in relatively wet thunderstorms, sometimes lightning strikes in relatively dry places outside the thunderstorm.”
Firefighters across the state are on high alert anticipating upcoming weather conditions and fire threats. “Lightning strikes can stay hidden for days until they actually pop up and become a fire,” Pascal said.
This year’s wildfire season has burned nearly 220,000 acres, 20 times the area burned during the same period last year. Wildfires across California have forced thousands of people to evacuate their homes, damaged dozens of buildings and killed at least one resident.
“Both Southern California and Northern California have a lot of unburned fuel that comes from the rain and precipitation we get throughout the winter,” Pascal said. “Also, we haven’t had very active fire seasons over the past few years, so there’s a lot of fuel available. The potential for these fires is real.
The largest fire at the moment – the Lake Fire in Santa Barbara County – is currently 34% contained. An email update issued by Cal Fire Monday morning said improving weather conditions reduced fire activity Sunday night. But the fire has scorched more than 38,000 acres, and nearby Los Padres National Forest has stepped up closures that will last until mid-August.
Cal Fire has dispatched an emergency team to the 11,000-acre Shelley Fire in Sikkiyou County. Two weeks later, firefighters had only contained 3% of the total affected area.
“It’s still difficult to get workers in and out,” Pascal said of rural areas. Rescuers either arrived by plane or walked for hours to reach the fire line.
Crews traveling long distances through mountainous and remote areas to fight fires have become more dangerous due to unprecedented extreme heat. The weather service issued a heat warning for the San Francisco Bay Area on Saturday as temperatures climbed above 100 degrees. Sacramento officials also reported that the first two weeks of July were the hottest on record in the city’s 146-year history.
“We’ve been training so that when the summer heat wave hits, we’ll be ready,” Pascal said of first responders.
Pascal warned California residents to also prepare for summer heat and fires.
“Work with your family to develop an emergency plan,” Pascal said. “When evacuating like this [order] If there’s a fire or emergency, you can leave early…and we can go in and provide offense to try to put out those fires.
