SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Gusty winds will bring dangerous fire conditions Wednesday through early Thursday for the Sacramento Valley and surrounding foothills, as well as the Coastal Mountain and surrounding valley locations.
Winds will not be as strong as the last big wind event, but there’s a big change this time and that's extremely dry fuels. In fact, most areas are seeing the fuels at their driest levels ever for this time of year.
A graph from the Northern California Geographic Area Coordination Center (NCGCC) shows the all-time maximum dryness in the area in red. The normal dryness is in grey. The current standings are in blue, which has recently been rivaling the all-time driest.
A number of factors play into the dry fuels. One of the main reasons is that Northern California has had no significant rain since May. What this means is fires could spread quickly with just the slightest bit of wind and a spark.
Wind gusts could reach 45-55 mph on the west side of the Sacramento Valley and near the Coastal Valley. Higher gusts are possible in canyons and exposed ridges.
The north winds will lower and continue to dry out fuels with humidity in the teens and 20s with very little overnight recovery. Lighter winds will lower the fire danger Thursday.
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