Offshore Winds: Critical Fire Weather, Los Angeles, Ventura and San Luis Obispo County's

DISCUSSION...CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED AS
MODERATE TO STRONG SANTA ANA WINDS COMBINE WITH VERY LOW RELATIVE
HUMIDITY THURSDAY EVENING THROUGH SATURDAY EVENING AND A FIRE
WEATHER WATCH IS IN EFFECT. CONFIDENCE IS RELATIVELY HIGH AS A
RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS INTO THE GREAT BASIN THURSDAY NIGHT
THROUGH FRIDAY AND THEN SHIFTS EAST WHILE WEAKENING SATURDAY THROUGH SUNDAY.

 THE SANTA ANA WINDS ARE EXPECTED PEAK FRIDAY MIDDAY AND THEN PERSIST
WHILE WEAKENING SLIGHTLY FRIDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SATURDAY. TEMPERATURES WILL RANGE 5 TO 10 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL WITH POOR TO MODERATE RELATIVE HUMIDITY RECOVERY. RELATIVE HUMIDITY IS EXPECTED TO FALL SHARPLY INTO THE SINGLE DIGITS AND MID TEENS THROUGH FRIDAY MIDDAY AND BY SATURDAY WIDESPREAD SINGLE DIGIT HUMIDITY WILL EXTEND FROM THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS TO THE LOWER ELEVATIONS OVER THE ENTIRE AREA AND WILL PERSIST THROUGH SUNDAY. ONSHORE WINDS WILL RETURN TO THE NEAR COASTAL AREAS BRIEFLY SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND THEN INCREASE AND POSSIBLY PUSH INTO THE COASTAL VALLEYS SUNDAY AFTERNOON. A SLOW RELATIVELY HUMIDITY RECOVERY IS EXPECTED WITHIN THE INCREASING ONSHORE WINDS AND CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO PERSIST SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY.

AREAS OF MODERATE OFFSHORE WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP OVER
SAN LUIS OBISPO AND SANTA BARBARA COUNTIES FRIDAY EVENING AND CONTINUE AT TIMES THROUGH SUNDAY. WIDESPREAD RELATIVE HUMIDITY LESS THAN 10 PERCENT IS EXPECTED SATURDAY AND SUNDAY WITH POOR TO MODERATE RECOVERY. WEAK ONSHORE WINDS ARE EXPECTED BRIEFLY SATURDAY AND RETURN STRONGER AND BECOME LOCALLY GUSTY SUNDAY AFTERNOON. ELEVATED FIRE DANGER IS EXPECTED WITH THE OFFSHORE AS WELL AS WITH THE ONSHORE WINDS WITHIN THE VERY DRY AIR MASS FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY.