Santa Barbara County’s South Coast has been added to the red flag warning the National Weather Service issued Monday for the Santa Ynez Mountains.
Through midnight Tuesday, both areas will experience a heightened level of fire danger due to a high-pressure system and prolonged heat wave.
The weather service expanded the red flag warning Tuesday afternoon, also issuing a wind advisory for the South Coast through midnight.
In response to the fifth straight day of heat, and in anticipation of the low relative humidity and sundowner winds predicted for Tuesday evening, the Santa Barbara County Fire Department increased its staffing levels, according to Capt. David Sadecki.
The department will employ a special task force to include three fire engines, one dozer, one water tender, one crew, one helicopter and one battalion chief, he said.
The task force will be positioned in southern Santa Barbara County, Sadecki said, but will be available to respond throughout the county operation area.
The National Weather Service predicts wind gusts up to 40 mph from west Goleta to Gaviota, with temperatures near 100 degrees and humidity in the 15 to 20 percent range.
Cooler temperatures — down to the low 80s — were expected to begin Wednesday, although a warming trend was expected to return by the beginning of next week.
“Survive today,” said Rich Thompson, a weather specialist from the National Weather Service office in Oxnard. “Through the weekend, today should be the warmest day by far.”
The Montecito Fire Protection District has also increased staffing levels — adding one patrol unit and one dispatcher — and Los Padres National Forest fire crews will be on 24-hour staffing levels through Thursday morning, since the weather service has predicted sundowners and extreme temperatures through that time.
The red flag warning also prompted the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden to close at 3 p.m., with plans to reopen at 9 a.m. Wednesday.
Sadecki encouraged locals to take appropriate precautions with the higher risk of fire, including reporting any sign of smoke immediately, using caution when sparking a flame-producing machinery near hazardous grass or brush areas, and having an evacuation plan in place.
Sundowners were expected to keep locals uncomfortable Tuesday night, Thompson said, with temperatures lingering in the mid-70s, but that should cool down to the 60s by overnight Wednesday.
Temperatures will be 10 degrees cooler by Friday, he said, hovering in the upper 70s in Santa Barbara and a bit cooler near the beaches.
“Any relief we get is good relief,” he said.
Warm temperatures will return slightly over the weekend, Thompson said, bringing the potential for more significant heat by the middle of next week.
— Noozhawk staff writer Gina Potthoff can be reached at gpotthoff@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.