Santa Ana Winds To Blast SWR, IE As Higher Temps Return

TEMECULA, CA — Temecula is under a wind advisory and a red flag warning through Friday as the first Santa Ana wind event of the fall season was forecast throughout the Inland Empire. The National Weather Service has posted a red flag warning for the region.

"Santa Ana winds will develop Friday and bring a large decrease in humidity over inland areas," the NWS said in a statement. "Gusts between 30 and 40 mph are possible in windier areas. A few areas will have combined sustained (northerly) winds of 25 mph and gusts of 35-plus mph when humidity will be less than 15%, possibly for up to six hours Friday afternoon."

The red flag warning, which implies higher wildfire risks, will be in effect from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, while a Wind Advisory will remain in effect until 6 a.m. Saturday.

"Especially given the dry (vegetation), there will be elevated to critical fire weather conditions, from the San Bernardino Mountains southwest through the Inland Empire and to the Santa Ana Mountains," the NWS stated.

As troughs of low pressure spin eastward Thursday night into Friday, they'll be replaced by a ridge of high pressure sweeping over California from the Pacific and anchoring over the Great Basin of Nevada and Utah, influencing area weather patterns through the weekend, according to the Weather Service.

Forecasters said that locally gusty northeast winds may linger into Sunday.

Temperatures will be slightly above normal across the region for the weekend, with the Riverside metropolitan area topping out in the low 80s Saturday and Sunday, giving way to overnight lows around 50.

In the Coachella Valley, the mercury will edge into the mid 80s Saturday and Sunday, falling to the low 60s at night, while the Temecula Valley's temperature band will be much the same as Riverside's.

Going into next week, sunny and dry conditions will persist across the region, with no precipitation in the seven-day forecast.

In Southwest Riverside County, your forecast from the National Weather Service is as follows:

Friday
Patchy blowing dust after 2pm. Sunny, with a high near 76. Breezy, with a north wind 15 to 20 mph increasing to 20 to 25 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 40 mph.

Friday night
Clear, with a low around 45. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph becoming light and variable.

Saturday
Sunny, with a high near 78. North wind 5 to 10 mph becoming southwest in the afternoon.

Saturday Night
Clear, with a low around 51. South wind 5 to 10 mph becoming northeast in the evening.

Sunday
Sunny, with a high near 82. Northeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm.

Sunday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 51.

Monday
Sunny, with a high near 83.

Monday Night
Patchy fog after 11pm. Otherwise, partly cloudy, with a low around 53.

Tuesday
Sunny, with a high near 86.

Tuesday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 54.

Wednesday
Sunny, with a high near 87.

Wednesday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 54.

Thursday
Sunny, with a high near 82.

City News Service contributed to this report.