(KWTX) -One of the major factors that made the January Los Angeles fires so devastating was the very strong Santa Ana winds. This week we are talking with Alex Tardy, the Warning Coordination Meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in San Diego,

The Santa Ana winds are dry, powerful winds that blow down the mountains toward the Southern California coast. The region sees about 10 Santa Ana wind events a year on average, typically occurring from fall into January. When conditions are dry, as they are right now, these winds can become a severe fire hazard.

Critical fire conditions are expected to continue through Friday. But rain could be on the way this weekend. Here's what to know.

Just a few years after the ozone hole was detected via satellite, the industrialized nations of the world, meeting in Montreal in 1987, adopted what is known as the Montreal Protocol.

A rare Particularly Dangerous Situation warning has been issued for Southern California as a powerful and potentially damaging Santa Ana wind event​ is expected.

Southern California will continue to face "dangerous fire weather conditions" including strong Santa Ana winds and extremely low humidity through later this week, forecasters said Tuesday.

The Santa Anas are expected to be most powerful Monday night into Tuesday. Fire services across the region say they are ready.

Not only do these winds accelerate the speed and spread of the fires, they also affect how the fires are fought. The strong winds can make it dangerous to fly aircraft used for containing the fires.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Human-caused climate change increased the likelihood and intensity of the hot, dry and windy conditions that fanned the flames of the recent devastating Southern California wildfires, a scientific study found.

Although evacuation orders have since been lifted for most of LA County, fire survivors continue to face the road to recovery as they focus on rebuilding.

Round Rock firefighters are back in Texas after traveling to California to help battle wildfires devastating the state.

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 on3. Reports indicated the large vegetation fire started Thursday afternoon on a hilltop near the US-Mexico border.