SAN DIEGO — Strong Santa Ana winds and low humidity will significantly raise the threat of wildfires Wednesday in San Diego County, according to the National Weather Service.
RELATED: SDG&E begins safety shutoffs by cutting power to more than 25,000 customers around the county
The NWS issued a red flag warning that will be in effect until 6 p.m. Thursday in the county mountains and valleys. Winds out of the east and northeast were expected to be between 25-35 mph, with gusts reaching 55 mph in the valleys and 75 mph near mountain ridge tops, forecasters said. Relative humidity will drop as low as 5%, with poor overnight recovery expected through Friday.
The winds increased Wednesday morning, and were expected to decrease Wednesday night through Thursday morning, according to the NWS. The threat was deemed high, according to the Sana Ana Wildfire Threat Index, which means that "upon ignition, fires will grow very rapidly, will burn intensely, and will be very difficult to control.''
A high wind warning will also be in effect until 6 p.m. Thursday in the county mountains and valleys. Officials warned that damaging winds could blow down trees and power lines, while travel will be especially difficult for high-profile vehicles. Temperatures Wednesday could reach 77 degrees near the coast and inland, 78 in the western valleys, 69 near the foothills 60 in the mountains and 71 in the deserts.
San Diego Gas & Electric officials said the utility was considering precautionary power shutoffs for more than 40,000 customers. The shutoffs would be implemented to de-energize power lines in danger of being damaged or downed by strong winds, potentially sparking wildfires.
As of 4:52 p.m. Wednesday, 23,731 customers had their power shut off in Alpine, Boulevard, Campo, Descanso, Dulzura, portions of El Cajon, portions of Encinitas, portions of Escondido, Fallbrook, portions of Jamul, Julian, Mount Laguna, Pala, Pauma Valley, Pine Valley, Potrero, Poway, Rainbow, Ramona,
portions of Rancho Bernardo, portions of Rancho Santa Fe, an unincorporated
area east of San Juan Capistrano, Santa Ysabel and Valley Center.
If power is shut off for an extended period of time, SDG&E may open community resource centers where residents can get water and snacks, charge their phones and get up-to-date information about the outages.
A full list of the center locations can be found here.
Conway Elementary and Del Lago Academy in Escondido, along with Double Peak Elementary, San Elijo Elementary and San Elijo Middle School in San Marcos would also close in anticipation of power shutoffs, said Music Watson, a spokeswoman with the county Office of Education.