National Weather Service officials have upgraded an alert on fire conditions in a portion of the North Bay starting Sunday morning to a Red Flag Warning.
The change signals increased confidence from forecasters that the area — which covers a large swath of the Central Valley and much of Solano County — will see gusty winds and low humidity, weather conditions that increase the risk of fires.
“We’re pretty confident that the red flag conditions are going to come to pass beginning 8 a.m. Sunday morning and continue through at least 8 p.m., Monday evening,” said Jeffery Wood, meteorologist for the National Weather Service’s Sacramento office.
The warning area spans from Modesto to Redding.
In high-terrain areas in the North Bay and the East Bay, the Weather Service also warned of an elevated risk of grass fires through the weekend into Monday.
Wood and the Weather Service said residents should follow key safety steps to minimize the risk of igniting a fire: avoid outdoor burns, properly dispose of cigarette butts instead of throwing them on the ground or in grass and drivers are encouraged to check under their cars for dragging objects whose sparks could cause a roadside fire.
“If you haven’t cleaned up areas around your house, if you’ve got dead grass clippings or leaves in the yard, it would be a good time to start cleaning those out,” Wood said. “Give your house a defensible position.”
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