Maybe it isn't windy where you are right now, but some areas of Southern California are experiencing strong gusts like those that drove the growth of L.A.'s recent deadly wildfires. This is how the National Weather Service makes its forecasts and decides when to issue warnings.

After killing at least nine people, the Palisades Fire continues to burn as residents remain under evacuation orders and warnings, with the next Santa Ana wind event continuing fire danger.

Easing winds delivered a brief but much-needed reprieve to firefighters Tuesday as they battled two massive blazes burning in the Los Angeles area, and the National Weather Service pushed back its unusually dire warning of critical fire weather until early the following day.

A beefed-up firefighting force was staged around Los Angeles to attack flare-ups or new blazes and anxious residents prepared for more fire danger as winds began to build Tuesday, a week after two