RivCo Braces For Powerful Santa Ana Wind Event

MURRIETA, CA — While the rain is finally gone from Riverside County, residents must now prepare for high winds headed for the region this week, weather officials warned.

Santa Ana winds are expected to arrive as early as Wednesday morning and last through the afternoon on Thursday, triggering a Wind Advisory from the National Weather Service.

"Winds this strong can make driving difficult, especially for high profile vehicles. Use extra caution," forecasters said, adding that strong gusts will have the power to blow around unsecured objects, cause power outages and send tree limbs flying.

In the Gorgonio Pass area near Banning, west winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts of 50 to 65 mph are possible. As for the Coachella Valley, forecasters predict west winds of 20 to 30 mph with gusts of 40 to 50 mph. The strongest winds will blow through the foothills of the mountains. Across Southwest Riverside County, north winds of 15 to 25 mph with gusts of 35 to 45 mph are forecast.

An onshore flow will shift to the northeast on Thursday, marking the start of a Santa Ana windstorm that may linger, forecasters said.

"These offshore winds will be strongest in foothills and locally into parts of the valleys, where gusts could reach 40 to 50 mph Thursday night," the NWS said. "And so begins a prolonged offshore flow pattern that will last into next week."

The Santa Anas can be cause for wildfire trepidation, but since the county received well over an inch of rain from the Christmas and New Year's storms, the risk of ignition is much lower.

"While these warm, dry and windy conditions will boost fire potential, relatively high vegetation moisture ... will mitigate that threat," according to the weather service.

Across much of the county, daytime highs will hang between 54 and 59 degrees on Thursday.