Red Flag Warning issued for SLO County during heat wave. Here’s what that means

Stephanie Zappelli
·1 min read

Extreme heat and high winds brought critical fire danger conditions to inland portions of San Luis Obispo County and Cuyama, the National Weather Service warned.

On Thursday, the Weather Service upgraded its “fire weather watch” to a Red Flag Warning, which will be in place from Friday at 10 a.m. to Saturday at 6 a.m.

This means that “rapid fire growth and and extreme fire behavior could threaten life and property,” the agency said.

In the North County, the temperature could reach highs of 115 degrees on Friday and 116 degrees on Saturday, the Weather Service said. High temperatures coupled with 25 to 45 mph winds increase the threat of large fires, the agency said.

Meanwhile, an excessive heat warning was in place for northern and interior San Luis Obispo County until Wednesday at 6 p.m.

“Considering the extreme nature of this heat event and the holiday fire ignition sources available, conditions are favorable for rapid and large fire growth, along with extreme fire behavior,” the Weather Service said in its forecast.

The Weather Service urged people to “use extreme caution with anything that can spark a wildfire,” and advised people who live in wildland interface areas to be prepared to evacuate.

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