The wet weather will bring relief to Southern California after a prolonged period of dryness, but there’s concern that any bursts of heavy rainfall could cause flooding.

Containing wildfires—never mind extinguishing them—in parched and windy conditions can be monstrously difficult. Dry vegetation is rocket fuel for blazes and wind both feeds the flames and spreads the embers. “The winds are like pointing an air blower at a fireplace,” says Gershunov, “except it’s not contained and it’s on a much larger scale.”

California firefighters could make more headway in containing three major wildfires burning in and around Los Angeles on Friday, as the latest round of blistering winds calm and the area's first rainfall in months arrives over the weekend.