Southern California is bracing for an "unprecedented" third Particularly Dangerous Situation warning in a month, as extreme Santa Ana winds increase fire danger.

This story originally appeared in CalMatters. As climate change warms the planet, wildfires have become so unpredictable and extreme that new words were invented: firenado, gigafire, fire siege — even fire pandemic.

The Santa Ana winds are dry, powerful winds that blow down the mountains toward the Southern California coast. The region sees about 10 Santa Ana wind events a year on average, typically occurring from fall into January. When conditions are dry, as they are right now, these winds can become a severe fire hazard.

The Santa Ana winds that fanned the fires devastating Southern California were forecast to ... rents a home in Altadena that survived the fires because her husband stayed behind to defend it ...

The Palisades and Eaton wildfires also continue burning in the Los Angeles area, leaving parts of Southern California with devastating fire damage.

As critical fire weather continues to strike in Southern California, crews are also tasked with preparing for a storm expected this weekend that could trigger mudslides in burn scar areas.

Firefighters fought to maintain the upper hand on a huge and rapidly moving wildfire that swept through rugged mountains north of Los Angeles and resulted in more than 50,000 people being put under evacuation orders or warnings.

Wednesday, 12:25 p.m. PST The Hughes Fire grew to 3,407 acres, according to Cal Fire, with evacuation orders extending to the community of Castaic and evacuation warnings stretching to the northernmost parts of Santa Clarita, which had an estimated population of 224,028 in 2023.

A fire north of a jail complex in Castaic has triggered evacuations in L.A. County, even as Southern California hopes for some rain to help with firefighting efforts.

Dozens of people are believed to have died in the Palisades and Eaton fires, which have burned down whole swaths of communities

Parched Southern California was forecast to face more dangerous winds on Wednesday but could get some needed rain this weekend, dampening prospects of another round of deadly wildfires while raising the possibility of challenges like toxic ash runoff.