SANTA ANAS EXPECTED TO HIT COUNTY EARLY TODAY

Wind gusts could cause damage and raise wildfire risk

Strong, dry Santa Ana winds will gust up to 80 mph today in San Diego County’s Cuyamaca Mountains and 50 mph to 60 mph in some foothill communities, possibly causing wind damage and raising the wildfire risk, according to the National Weather Service.

“We’re also to see gusts of 30 mph to 40 mph in places like Escondido and Valley Center,” said Alex Tardy, a weather service forecaster. “We’ll be getting dry winds in an area that’s already dry from the Santa Anas.

“The relative humidity will drop into the teens on Thursday and into single digits in some places on Friday.”

A red-f lag fire weather warning will be in effect until 6 p.m. on Saturday for the eastern half of the county.

On Wednesday, San Diego Gas & Electric had notified more than 90,000 customers — many living in backcountry areas — that they could lose power in the coming days.

“The time to prepare is now,” said Brian D’Agostino, SDG&E’s director of fire science and climate adaptation. “It’s time to charge all your devices — your cell phones, your computers, anything you can charge. You want to get them charged (Wednesday) afternoon into this evening.”

The pre-emptive de-energizing of lines, called Public Safety Power Shutoffs, is something utilities in California have increasingly used to reduce the risk of high winds knocking down power lines and potentially igniting wildfires.

Today’s winds could cause hazardous driving conditions on Interstate 8, east of Alpine. The dangers include rapidly forming dust clouds.