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A "particularly dangerous situation red flag warning" has been issued for parts of Southern California, as more extreme winds are expected to impact the region and deadly fires continue to burn.
The rare, National Weather Service-issued PDS warning is for "extremely rare and dangerous fire weather conditions that have previously led to large and dangerous deadly wildfires."
In effect for parts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties through noon Wednesday, the PDS red flag warning signals that "this setup is about as bad as it gets," the NWS says.
But as member station LAist reports, the PDS red flag warning has already been issued a few other times in recent months — an indication of the extreme weather Southern California is facing.
The "particularly dangerous situation" term was first used in the 1980s as guidance for tornado watches, says Marc Chenard, a meteorologist at the NWS Weather Prediction Center. Since then, it's been used for other hazards such as flash flood watches to "signal more extreme events."
With the ongoing fires in Southern California, a PDS red flag warning means that "the risk of damage and loss of life is high," Chenard tells NPR.
A regular warning already indicates a significant hazard, Chenard says. "But when you see the PDS term attached to it, it's even a level beyond that. So, now the threat to life and property is even more extreme."
Multiple fires have been burning across Los Angeles and Ventura counties since last week, fueled in part by extremely dry conditions, gusty winds and low humidity. The Eaton, Palisades and Hurst fires have scorched more than 38,000 acres and destroyed more than 12,000 structures.
Here are a few more terms related to the wildfires to understand.
A firefighter drags a hose during the Palisades Fire on Jan. 8, 2025 in Malibu, Calif.Eric Thayer/Getty Images North America
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