NWS issues fire weather watch for Fourth of July weekend. What it means in SLO County

John Lynch

July 3, 2024 at 7:16 p.m.·1 min read

San Luis Obispo County appears to be in for a hot and dry Fourth of July weekend — with a heightened risk for fire.

According to a National Weather Service fire weather watch alert, a protracted heat wave will bring hot and dry conditions to Southern California, accompanied by 20 to 40 mph winds.

Starting Thursday evening through Friday night across mountain and interior areas, weather conditions will be favorable for fires in San Luis Obispo County’s interior valleys and mountains, along with the southern Salinas Valley, Cuyama Valley and the Santa Lucia mountains.

A fire weather watch means that critical fire weather conditions are likely to occur in the coming days.

Residents near wildland interfaces should prepare now on what to do if a wildfire breaks out at readyforwildfire.org and wildfirerisk.org.

The announcement comes as multiple vegetation fires have broken out in and around San Luis Obispo County on Wednesday afternoon.

That included a fire on the Cuesta Grade that backed up Highway 101 traffic nearly to San Luis Obispo.

Meanwhile, PG&E warned customers in the uppermost areas of San Luis Obispo County that they could lose electricity if the utility company has to implement a public safety power shutoff this weekend to reduce wildfire risk.

That potential shutoff would last from Friday morning through Saturday, according to the San Luis Obispo County Office of Emergency Services.

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