High winds are knocking down massive trees in some SoCal neighborhoods, damaging homes and vehicles

Strong winds toppled massive trees in some Southern California neighborhoods on Friday night, damaging homes, vehicles and destroying a concrete block wall in Arcadia.

A high wind warning went into effect Friday at 3 p.m. in the Santa Monica Mountains, the Santa Clarita and San Fernando Valleys and the Los Angeles County Mountains – and the warning was expected to remain in effect through 3 p.m. Saturday.

A towering tree rooted in Ellen Kutza’s neighbor’s Arcadia property fell on two of Kutza’s vehicles.

“We won’t know how much damage is until it’s light, and we know how much power we have,” Kutza said Friday night. “It’s pretty windy up here, so everyone stay healthy.”

In Ontario, a 150-foot tree fell into a two-story home, destroying an entire side of the building while three people were inside. One of these people was upstairs at the time of the incident and was rescued by firefighters. The other two occupants managed to escape on their own.

No injuries were reported. The house was marked in red by officers.

According to the National Weather Service, the LA County Mountains could experience winds of 35 mph to 45 mph with gusts of 70 mph and isolated gusts potentially reaching 80 mph in the western portion of the San Gabriel Mountains.

Other areas covered by the warning could see winds of 25 to 35mph with gusts of up to 65mph – strongest in the Santa Monica Mountains and the western and northern portions of the San Fernando Valley.

Lighter wind warnings are in effect for the coastal area of ​​Los Angeles, including downtown, and the San Gabriel Valley through 3 p.m. Saturday. Forecasters are expecting winds of 20 to 30 miles per hour with gusts of 50 miles per hour in the coastal area, particularly near Malibu. The San Gabriel Valley could be hit with winds of 15 to 25 mph and gusts up to 40 mph.

“Daytime temperatures will warm above seasonal normals for this time of year as offshore currents remain in place throughout the period, but in wind-sheltered areas and the valleys inland, overnight low temperatures could become quite cold,” according to the Weather Service .

The notices included warnings that the strong winds can blow around unsecured objects and make driving difficult, especially for high-profile vehicles. Areas reported for caution by the Weather Service include Freeways 5 and 14.

The City News Service contributed to this report.

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