MALIBU, CA – Santa Ana winds picked up again Monday and were expected to continue into Tuesday as firefighters battling the deadly Woolsey Fire in Los Angeles and Ventura counties worked to hold back the flames.
The blaze had burned 91,572 acres and was 20 percent contained, with full containment not expected until Thursday.
Santa Ana wind gusts reached as high as 60 miles per hour in parts of Ventura County on Monday and heavy gusts could follow Tuesday, National Weather Service Meteorologist Curt Kaplan said.
A Red Flag Warning remained in effect for Los Angeles and Ventura counties through Tuesday, when winds will be strongest in the mornings and early afternoons, giving firefighters a nightly reprieve, Kaplan said.
Related: SCE Investigated For Role In Woolsey Fire: Report While most evacuation orders remained in effect, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department announced that repopulation has begun for Agoura Hills, Westlake Village, Oak Park, North Ranch, Newbury Park residents affected by the fire.
A total of 450 engines, 40 water tenders, 50 bulldozers, and 50 crews were sent into the battle, Cal Fire reported.
Firefighters also had to deal with a fast-moving brush fire along the 118 Freeway near the Los Angeles/Ventura county line, which burned 105 acres and forced the immediate evacuation of Box Canyon and Lake Manor residents.
Meanwhile, the California Public Utilities Commission is investigating Southern California Edison for its possible role in the fire.
Osby credited the Los Angeles Fire Department with keeping areas to the south, especially in Bell Canyon, "buttoned up" employing some 50 engines on the fire’s flank to keep it from spreading south of Mulholland Highway into Pacific Palisades and Topanga Canyon.
"Pepperdine has a long-standing understanding with the county fire and sheriff’s departments," Richardson said.