Full Notification

The National Weather Service (NWS) forecasts elevated fire weather conditions for Malibu Monday, Feb. 7 – Sunday, Feb. 13 due to an extended period of gusty Santa Ana Winds with hot temperatures and low humidities.  
 
Monday, Feb. 7 through Tuesday, Feb. 8, NE wind with gusts of 25-45 mph focused over Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. Humidity: Minimums 10-15% with isolated 7-10%. Temperatures: Highs 75-85F common for coastal and valley areas. Assessment: A few hours of red flag weather conditions each day, but due to high live fuel moistures, no Red Flag Warnings are considered.
 
Tuesday, Feb. 8 through Thursday, Feb. 10, NE-E wind with gusts of 35-55 mph and isolated gusts to 60 mph in the LA County mountains, focused over wind prone areas of LA and Ventura counties. Humidity: Minimums 6-12% Wednesday, 10-18% Thursday. Temperatures: Highs 80-90 for coastal and valley areas, approaching record levels (Excessive Heat Watch for LA County Coast and valleys with potential for heat stress/illness). Assessment: Large area and multiple hours of red flag weather conditions likely. Due to high live fuel moistures no Red Flag Warnings are considered, but active wildfires are possible, especially in areas where Santa Ana winds align with older growth vegetation fuel beds.
 
Friday, Feb. 11 through Sunday, Feb. 13, long duration of offshore flow likely to continue through the weekend with no chances of rain. Weak to moderate Santa Ana winds, with some uncertainty in strength of winds. Continued very dry conditions with low daytime humidities 8-15% and poor overnight recoveries. Continued hot weather with highs in the 80s across coastal and valley areas.
 
The Live Fuel Moisture (LFM) for the Santa Monica Mountains is at 156% as of January 31, up from 92% last month. The above-normal precipitation in December combined with warm temperatures have caused a widespread green-up, but due to the lack of rain in January, dead fuels have dried out substantially. Malibu could still have a significant fire if there is a fire start that is in alignment with Santa Ann winds and slope.  
 
The City of Malibu tracks Live Fuel Moisture (LFM) in the Malibu area as an important part of determining current fire conditions for our community. LFM is the percentage of water content to dry matter in live vegetation. LFM can be as high as 200%, and 60% or lower is considered critical. The Los Angeles County Fire Department Forestry Division conducts sampling approximately every two weeks and posts the results on their website: https://fire.lacounty.gov/fire-weather-danger.
 
BE PREPARED
Malibu residents should be prepared for potential fires, evacuations, power and traffic signal outages, downed tree limbs and powerlines, hazardous driving conditions and debris in the road way. Drive with caution, especially on canyon roads. Under California law, motorists must come to a complete stop at any intersection with a malfunctioning traffic signal. See preparedness information at: https://ready.lacounty.gov.
 
CHECK YOUR PLANS AND SUPPLIES
Review your emergency plans, including evacuation routes and reunification locations, and check your emergency supplies for expired batteries, food and medication, including for pets. Keep your vehicle gas tank full. Be sure you know how to manually open your garage door if the power is out. Please check in on neighbors, family and friends who are elderly or disabled to make sure they are prepared and informed. See more power outage preparedness info at: https://ready.lacounty.gov/power-outage/. Review the City’s Evacuation Plan, evacuation zones and maps and evacuation terminology (Order, Warning etc.) at https://www.malibucity.org/evac.
 
STAY INFORMED
Residents should monitor emergency and weather updates on local AM and FM radio (which will work with handcrank, solar, battery-powered and car radios if the power is out). The City will send out emergency alerts as needed and post all emergency information on the website www.malibucity.org. All current City alerts are posted at www.MalibuCity.org/alerts. Sign up for alerts at www.MalibuCity.org/news (scroll down to “Alert Center.”). Sign up for LA County emergency alerts at: https://lacounty.gov/emergency/alert-la/.