It is about the last thing North Bay residents want to hear today, but the National Weather Service is once again warning people to be on the alert for dangerous fire conditions.
A Fire Weather Watch for the North Bay Mountains has been upgraded to a Red Flag Warning. It goes into effect Monday evening at 11 p.m. and is expected to run through Wednesday at 8 a.m.
A Fire Weather Watch, which is a lower level warning, has been issued for the Santa Cruz Mountains and East Bay Hills and Diablo Range as well.
Temperatures are dropping slightly, but winds are forecast to pick up throughout the week, getting up to about 20 mph with extremely dry conditions.
“Our concerns are those north-northeast winds that we have had time and time again this season, but primarily in the upper elevations,” said Paul Lowenthal, assistant fire marshal in Santa Rosa. That means the threat is once again centered in Napa and Sonoma counties.
A Red Flag Warning means forecasters expect weather conditions that could cause extreme fire behavior.]
PG&E has also announced an “elevated” risk of another public safety power shutoff because of the weather conditions.