Extreme heat & increased winds Wednesday, Lake Fire smoke

The National Weather Services calls the prolonged heatwave thats hit the Central Coast over the past couple weeks as "long-lasting and extreme" - especially when it comes to our interior and mountain areas which does not make good conditions for the Lake Fire fight in combination with increasing winds and dangerously low humidity levels for fire safety.

Temperatures are expected to remain 5-15 degrees above normal this week for this time of year in our region.

Smoke from the Lake Fire will remain present across Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties.

Winds will peak up each evening through Thursday, further spreading that smoke.

A Red Flag Warning is in effect 3pm Tuesday through 3pm Wednesday for the Santa Ynez Valley due to 45 mph winds, low humidity, and temps up to 105. The Gaviota hills are especially susceptible to fire spread at this time with winds set to pick up there.

A Red Flag Warning is also in effect until 9pm Tuesday for Santa Barbara County Mountains with winds up to 35 mph and overall critical fire weather conditions near the Lake Fire.

An Excessive Heat Warning is in effect until 9pm Thursday for Santa Ynez Valley expecting temps up to 105.

An Excessive Heat Warning is also in effect for Ventura County until 9pm Saturday for all our local mountains with temps up to 116 expected.

Cooling is expected Friday but will remain above normal temperatures. Temperatures will cool even further into Monday.