Fire Weather Watch scheduled for much of Bay Area starting Thursday

SAN RAFAEL, Calif. - The National Weather Service issued a Fire Weather Watch for much of the Bay Area starting Thursday morning and running through Saturday evening. Fire officials say now is the time to finish up any mitigation work around your property, if you haven't already.

"Although we had cooler temperatures, and rain this last weekend, it's quickly drying out with the conditions that we have now. It won’t take much to get a fire going," said Santa Rosa Fire Marshal Paul Lowenthal.

The National Weather Service's forecast includes high offshore winds, with gusts up to 50 miles per hour in higher elevations, coupled with low humidity.

"So, what we would want to do is clear out all of this low, down brush, and take off a lot of those lowest limbs on the trees, so the fire can’t make the jump," said William Cross, a fuel mitigation arborist with Treemasters in San Rafael, who offered advice on how homeowners can make their properties fire ready. "These low grasses, if this caught, it’s going to catch those taller grasses, catch the scotch broom, and then catch those lower limbs," said Cross while pointing to limbs hanging over a home's roof.

Firefighters are also urging property owners undertaking any mitigation work ahead of the watch, to do it early in the morning or at dusk when temperatures are cooler.