Red Flag Warning issued for the Victor Valley thru Wednesday

VICTOR VALLEY, Calif. (VVNG.com) — The US National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning for the Victor Valley beginning at noon on Tuesday, September 8, 2020.

According to the NWS, areas will see winds of 15 to 25 mph with gusts to 55mph and daytime humidity of 5 to 10 percent with poor recovery Tuesday night. Strong gusty winds and low humidity are expected for the deserts till 8:00 pm Wednesday.

The winds and low humidity means that any fires that develop will likely spread rapidly and outdoor burning is not recommended.

Air quality in the Victor Valley has been unhealthy since Sunday, however, Labor Day Monday the area was blanketed by a thick layer of smoke, leaving residents wondering if there was a fire nearby.

The Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District said smoke from the El Dorado fire burning near Yucaipa is pushing broad clouds of smoke up and over the High Desert. The #ElDoradoFire has grown to 8,600 acres and is 7% contained.

MDAQMD advised of potentially poor air quality through September 8th due to ground-level ozone and wildfire smoke impacts.

“As Southern California continues to experience high temperatures amid an ongoing heatwave, ground-level ozone is likely to worsen ambient air quality.” stated an MDAQMD advisory.

In any area impacted by poor air quality including smoke:

• everyone should avoid any vigorous outdoor or indoor exertion;
• people with respiratory or heart disease, older adults, and children should remain indoors;
• keep windows and doors closed;
• run your air conditioner if you have one – recirculation function is ideal;
• avoid using a swamp cooler or whole-house fan to prevent bringing outdoor pollutants inside.

A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions
are either occurring now....or will shortly. A combination of
strong winds...low relative humidity...and warm temperatures can
contribute to extreme fire behavior.

Below are VVNG member photos of the smokey sky as seen from around the Victor Valley over Labor Day.

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