
Hurricane force winds are fanning the flames of the Southern California wildfires. What are Santa Ana winds?
CBSN
At least five wildfires are ravaging Southern California, and the three largest — which are at 0% containment — have already killed at least two people, burned thousands of acres and prompted the evacuation of about 70,000 residents. Santa Ana winds coupled with dry conditions have created the perfect storm for the fires to spread.
Hurricane-force winds have fanned the flames of the Palisades Fire, currently burning on the west side of Los Angeles County in coastal communities including Pacific Palisades and Malibu. The winds are also blowing the embers of the Eaton Fire, which is impacting the cities of Pasadena and Altadena in northeast L.A. County.

The threat of tornadoes moved east into the Mississippi Valley and Deep South on Saturday, a day after a massive storm system moving across the country unleashed winds that damaged buildings, whipped up dust storms that caused deadly crashes and fanned more than 100 wildfires in several central states. Fatalities were reported in Missouri and Texas.

A Canadian woman who had appeared in an "American Pie" movie was detained for several days by U.S. immigration officials while attempting to cross the border from Mexico to the U.S. to renew her work visa, according to her mother. The woman's father expects his daughter to be able to return to Canada as early as Friday.

When the Environmental Protection Agency was formed in 1970, its mission was to protect the environment and human health. Since then, scientists, health experts and advocates have worked to implement regulations aimed at protecting and cleaning the air we breathe and the water we drink. Many of these regulations, which were aimed at cleaning up the air, also helped reduce carbon emissions, which can contribute to climate change – so it was a win for our bodies and the planet.