Two new wildfires started in Southern California Tuesday night and into Wednesday, as gusty Santa Ana winds continue to plague the state this week.

Firefighters continue to fight fires in Los Angeles as strong winds returned to the region, spurring on a new fire near San Diego.

Much of Southern California is under a red flag warning through Wednesday with more strong winds in the forecast.

Watch KTLA team coverage of the latest wind event to create a wildfire risk in metro Los Angeles. Jan. 20, 2025.

In a state that averages more than 7,500 wildfires a year some California homeowners keep helmets and fire hoses handy. However, the Los Angeles fires demonstrate a new reality: Wildfires in the state are growing larger and more ferocious and burning into suburbs and cities more often, experts told USA TODAY.

The fires devastating California are exacerbated by warm winds similar to what Alberta experiences, which is a risk the Calgary Fire Department prepares for.

The Los Angeles wildfires have robbed many Southern California residents not only of their homes but also of the great outdoors, sending toxic ash and unhealthy air to breathe into areas around the fires.

"A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now, or will shortly," the NWS said.

A fresh round of deadly 100mph Santa-Ana winds will hit western states, raising America’s wildfire threat back to ‘critical’. As much of the country freezes in a minus-20C snow blast, warm, dry winds along the Pacific coast threaten ‘rapid fire spread and extreme fire behaviour’.

Southern Californians are bracing for gusty winds and a heightened risk of wildfires less than two weeks after deadly blazes that have killed at least 27 people and ravaged thousands of homes.