City of Malibu issues a Red Flag Warning; potential power shut offs in effect

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2010
Santa Ana winds are bringing critical fire weather and red flag conditions to LA County Thursday through Sunday. Palm tree located at Zuma Beach. Photo by Samantha Bravo/TMT.

The National Weather Service in Los Angeles/Oxnard has issued a Red Flag Warning for wind and low relative humidity in Malibu and the Santa Monica Mountains. The warning is in effect from 9 a.m. today to 6 p.m. Saturday.

Northeast winds of 15 to 30 MPH with gusts to 45 MPH, and relative humidity of 5-15 percent are expected. If fire ignition occurs, conditions are favorable for rapid fire spread and extreme fire behavior which would threaten lives and properties. For weather forecasts, visit https://www.weather.gov/lox.

For safety, Charmlee Wilderness Park and Trancas Canyon Park will be closed today and tomorrow for hazardous fire weather.

According to a Malibu resident Point Dume Pavilions has lost power and will sell the rest of the hot deli food and close off frozen section to keep cold due to the power outage.

SCE may implement Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) on multiple circuits across much of Malibu starting Fri, Oct. 18, due to hazardous fire weather conditions (gusty Santa Ana wind and low humidity). SCE is notifying all customers in the affected areas directly.

For information on SCE PSPS, including potential and current outages, and power restoration times, visit www.sce.com/psps. See circuit maps in Malibu: https://malibucity.org/973/SCE-Circuit-Maps.

While fire conditions in Malibu will be less severe than surrounding areas, large fires that start and spread from those areas could reach Malibu. Residents should be prepared for potential power outages, fires, evacuations, traffic signal outages, downed trees and hazardous road conditions. Come to a complete stop at any intersection with a malfunctioning traffic signal, under CA law.

Make sure phones, tablets and laptops are charged, plan for refrigerated medications. Make sure you know how to open electric gates and garage doors when the power is out – see tips: https://www.safetyactioncenter.pge.com/articles/25-do-know-manually-open-garage-door-power. See LA County power outage preparedness guide: https://ready.lacounty.gov/power-outage.

Closely monitor weather conditions and emergency information on local news, especially AM / FM radio which will function with handcrank, battery, solar and car radios if the power is out. Make sure you are signed up for emergency alerts from City of Malibu, at www.malibucity.org/alerts, and LA County, at https://ready.lacounty.gov/alerts.