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Fire Watch In Effect For L.A. Until Christmas Day

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Dec 23, 2007 4:34 pm US/Pacific

Fire Watch In Effect For L.A. Until Christmas Day

LOS ANGELES (CBS) ― Southland mountains and canyon areas have been put under Christmas holiday "fire weather watch" by the National Weather Service as gusty, dry winds appear poised to blow in from the north alongside Santa Claus.

The alert was posted mid afternoon Sunday, and warns of dangerous fire weather through most of Christmas Day.

Strong winds from the north and northeast are expected to bring occasional blasts of wind as high as 70 miles an hour Christmas Eve in especially windy areas.

Recent rains have dampened brush and trees in local mountains, but the NWS warns that the offshore flow event will again dry potential wildfire fuel to dangerous levels.

The fire weather watch predicts sustained winds in the Santa Monica Mountains and at Malibu could reach sustained speeds of 35 miles per hour Monday, with gusts at some times reaching twice that speed.

A fire weather watch is not as serious as a Red Flag warning, which forecasts severe fire danger conditions.

(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.