Scattered Power Outages, Minor Damage Caused by High Winds

Blustery winds caused scattered power outages and downed a few trees in the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys Monday night, but the damage was slight in comparison with that caused by winds earlier this year.

The winds were joined by unseasonably high temperatures to make for an unspringlike evening.

“The combination of these high temperatures and high winds is unusual for this time of year,” said Stuart Seto, a weather specialist for the National Weather Service in Oxnard. He said the conditions were a result of high- and low-pressure systems hitting the Los Angeles area simultaneously. The gusts reached 40 mph in the Santa Clarita Valley.

A spokeswoman for the California Highway Patrol said a tree fell on the Ventura Freeway at Woodman Avenue about 8 p.m., causing some traffic delays but not hitting any vehicles. Another LAPD station received a call from a man whose tree had fallen on his car.

The Van Nuys Division of the Los Angeles Police Department closed the intersection of Sherman Way and Woodley Avenue in the early evening because a sign from a supermarket was leaning precariously.

A Department of Water and Power official said power outages hit areas of North Hollywood, Studio City and Woodland Hills. About 1,000 homes were affected throughout the entire Los Angeles area Monday night, the official said.

Seto said the winds and heat are expected to decrease today.