Southern California faces a "extremely critical fire weather" that will likely result in "widespread" downed trees, power lines and electricity outages this week, the National Weather Service warns. Threat level: Rare,

The strongest winds in more than a decade could hit Southern California, potentially causing structural damage and bringing extreme fire risk to areas that haven’t seen substantial rain in months.

Forecasters warned that a significant Santa Ana wind event this week could help wildfires spread quickly and erratically. Utility companies said they may pre-emptively cut off power to some customers.

The National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning for Los Angeles and parts of Ventura County through Thursday evening, meaning that conditions for wildfires will be at their highest thanks to low humidity,

Winds will whip up and humidity levels will drop in Southern California this week, raising the risk for wildfires in parched areas still recovering from a recent destructive blaze.

With yet another major Santa Ana wind event​ closing in on most of Southern California, local authorities are already taking steps to ensure a swift response to any emergencies that may arise.

In preparation for what it is calling “critical fire weather,” Cal Fire is moving firefighting resources from Northern California to Southern California, deploying additional crews and engines to Los Angeles,

The NWS is warning SoCal residents to be prepared as a life-threatening, destructive, widespread windstorm is expected to sweep through much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties Tuesday through Wednesday.