Red Flag Warning goes up for parts of North Bay due to low humidity, high winds, NWS says

SOLANO COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for the parts of Solano County and further north starting Saturday night. It says low humidity and high winds are creating critical fire danger.

"We are expecting critical fire conditions either ongoing or expected within the next 24 hours," said Kate Forest with the National Weather Service. "Within this window of time, expect very low relative humidity, gusty winds and dry fuels."

It is the first Red Flag Warning of the year for Northern California, but we've already seen dozens of fires break out. The recent Corral Fire burned nearly 15,000 acres near Tracy. Cal Fire says high winds and dry grass caused that fire to spread fast. Those same worries are back this weekend.

"Anything that starts will take off," said Brian Ham, chief with Cal Fire's Sonoma Lake Napa Unit. "Those fuels are one hour fuels which are flashy, and they'll move quite rapidly."

Ham says his crews are fully staffed this weekend with a host of artillery ready to combat fires if one breaks out. However, his message for the public is avoid all activities that could start a fire.

"Don't mow your lawn, a spark from that lawnmower could start a fire, and it could spread fast," he said. "Don't start a fire if you are camping, and definitely refrain from using fireworks."

He says there is plenty of grass from the heavy rain this winter, and due to the recent hot weather, the grass is drying out.

"This is pretty predicted with the grass crop that we've seen with the rains and later rains this winter," he said. "We had an above average season of rainfall which means our grass crops are just growing higher."

He also says residents in the red flag zone, especially those living near dry fields, should keep their phones handy in-case they hear any evacuation orders.