Forecasters issue new round of warnings about fire conditions in southern California TEASER: Chance of rain in the coming days could calm fires, but bring threat of mudslides PUBLISHED: 01/22/2025 at 6:01 am BYLINE: VOA News WRITER: Fern Robinson, Chris Hannas ASSIGNING EDITOR: DATELINE: SCRIPT EDITORS: wpm PLATFORMS: WEB _X_ TV __ RADIO __ EDITOR NOTES: new lede & grafs 2-4, edits graf 7, trims)) Firefighters and residents in southern California braced Wednesday for the possibility of more wildfire activity fueled by dry and strong winds, while the prospect of some rain in the forecast brought the potential for some relief from the fire threat but also the dangers of mudslides in fire-ravaged areas. The National Weather Service said dangerous fire conditions would persist in the Los Angeles area through Thursday or Friday. Forecasters said there was a 60% to 80% chance of rain in the region starting Saturday, with rainfall totals in most areas not exceeding 8 millimeters. A chance of thunderstorms bringing locally heavier rainfall has raised fears of mudslides with debris flowing down hilly areas that have been scorched by two weeks of wildfires. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said an executive order she signed Tuesday is designed to curb the flow of toxic debris from the region’s fires and protect the area’s beaches and oceans. “This is to prevent additional damage to areas already ravaged by fire and also to protect our watershed, beaches and ocean from toxic runoff,” the mayor said. City workers will remove toxic materials and set up barriers to direct the flow of debris into the sewer system. The fires have killed at least 27 people and destroyed thousands of buildings. Some information for this report came from The Associated Press.
