​Dangerous Winds Return To Region As Wildfires Spark In San Diego County

SAN DIEGO, CA — Dangerous winds returned to the region as multiple wildfires sparked overnight in San Diego County.

A red flag warning was in effect until at least 10 p.m. Tuesday for the county's inland valleys and mountains, according to the National Weather Service.

Northeast winds were expected to reach 25 to 35 mph, with gusts up to 60 mph and isolated gusts between 80 to 90 mph for the mountain areas. Humidity was expected to be as low as 4%.

"If fire ignition occurs, conditions are favorable for rapid fire spread and extreme fire behavior," the NWS said.

The Lilac Fire was the first of three fires that sparked early Tuesday morning amid extreme fire weather conditions. The blaze broke out near Old Highway 395 and Lilac Road in the Bonsall area.

The fire burned 80 acres, damaged two structures and displaced 86 residents, according to Cal Fire San Diego. Evacuation orders and warnings were in effect.

The Pala Fire blackened 17 acres in Pala and the Riverview Fire scorched about an acre in Fallbrook, according to Cal Fire. Both blazes prompted evacuation orders that were later lifted, officials said.

Public safety power shutoffs began Monday, with SDG&E cutting power to hundreds of customers in an effort to reduce wildfire risk.

As of 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, 15,463 SDG&E customers were without power in communities across the county. An additional 68,162 customers were warned of possible outages.

SDG&E opened community resource centers to assist affected communities. Centers have wi-fi and charging stations for phone and medical devices.

In addition to a red flag warning, a high wind warning was in effect until 4 p.m. Tuesday for the mountains and valleys. A fire weather watch was also issued for 6 p.m. Wednesday until 6 p.m. Thursday for the mountains and valleys.

"Strong Santa Ana winds and very dry conditions will continue today but become weak and localized to foothills overnight," NWS San Diego forecasters wrote Tuesday.

"Another surge of offshore wind is expected to arrive Wednesday afternoon and night, through Thursday morning," forecasters added. "The Santa Ana winds weaken by Friday. A cold upper level storm system is expected to arrive for the weekend and would bring showers and low snow levels late Saturday through Sunday night."

Also see:

• High Winds, Fire Danger, Outages Force School Closures In San Diego County
• Over 15K Without Power, 68K More Under Shutoff Warning In San Diego County
• Crews Halt Riverview Fire In Fallbrook
• Crews Battle Pala Fire In San Diego's North County
• Lilac Fire Forces School Closures, Prompts Evacuations In Bonsall Area