Since Jan. 8, one wave after another of fierce Santa Anas have blown through Southern California. Thus far, the San Diego area has escaped the devastation seen in the Los Angeles areas by wind-whipped blazes that leveled homes and forced evacuations.

Strong winds fueled fires across Santa Ana in California. Dramatic footage shows a plume of smoke rising from a hillside, with strong winds swaying trees in the foreground on January 23. Reports indicated the large vegetation fire started Thursday afternoon on a hilltop near the US-Mexico border.

A critical fire threat will continue across County as Santa Ana winds and dry conditions persist through early Friday, according to the National Weather Service.

Santa Ana winds finally delivered a big, direct hit on San Diego County Tuesday, gusting as high as 102 mph in the backcountry where a touch of long-overdue rain could arrive this weekend.

An uptick in Santa Ana winds Wednesday afternoon through Thursday, combined with critically dry vegetation and low humidity, will result in elevated to locally critical fire weather conditions in County through late Thursday.

Jan. 24 A new wildfire was reported today at 6:52 a.m. in San Diego County. The wildfire has been burning on private land. Currently, there are no details on the containment or cause of the fire.