California heat wave broken by storm as air quality degrades due to wildfires

The Mosquito Fire has forced evacuations for thousands in California

California saw relief from an oppressive and record-breaking heat wave on Saturday after a tropical storm turned off the Pacific Coast. 

In the Bay Area, onshore flow brought temperatures back to average and southern California braced for rain and wind impacts. 

Officials warned of flooding in coastal and mountain areas, with some inland areas receiving several inches from now Post-Tropical Cyclone Kay.

A Seal Beach parking lot experienced minor flooding from high tide, according to authorities.

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Amidst the heat, the state had set a record for power consumption last week, and rolling blackouts were largely avoided as electrical grid capacity was stretched to its breaking point.

According to KCRA, some unplanned power outages occurred in Lodi that the California Independent System Operator's chief executive pinned on a "communication issue." 

The National Weather Service warned that northern California communities would be inundated with wildfire smoke, pushing into the Bay Area on the weekend. 

A boat sails on the water at sunset under a smoky sky, Sept. 8, 2022. Clouds of smoke from the Mosquito Fire cover Lake Tahoe at sunset.  (Photo by Ty O'Neil/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

1,000-foot flames shoot through the trees in Placer County off Foresthill Road on Saturday (Placer County Sheriff/Twitter)

Firefighters monitor the progress of backfires while battling the Mosquito Fire at Volcanoville, California, Sept. 9, 2022.  (REUTERS/Fred Greaves)

Most of the smoke was expected to be elevated, but organizers of the 72-mile Tour de Tahoe bike ride canceled the Sunday event due to heavy smoke from the fast-moving mosquito fire. 

The Washoe County Air Quality Management Division issued a Stage 2 Emergency Episode on Friday for the Reno-Sparks area due to smoke impacts from the blaze, which had spread over 33,754 acres and was 0% contained on Saturday. 

The Mosquito Fire has threatened thousands of homes, with evacuations in place and more than 1,500 personnel working to fight it.

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It continued to threaten numerous structures and power lines, although it was less active Friday than on previous nights. 

The fire's cause remains under investigation, but Pacific Gas & Electric said unspecified "electrical activity" occurred close in time to the report of the fire on Tuesday.

While wet weather helped efforts there, officials feared winds from the storm could expand the Fairview Fire. 

HEFirefighters cut a fire line around the burn zone of the Fairview Fire near Hemet on Friday, Sep. 9, 2022.  (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Vegetation burns during a firing operation to build a line to contain the Fairview Fire near Hemet, California, on September 8, 2022.  (PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)

Firefighters walk past a scorched landscape from the Fairview Fire inside the San Bernardino National Forest near Hemet, California on September 9, 2022.  (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)

However, minimal flooding was reported early Saturday and crews made significant progress.

Now, the deadly 28,307-acre fire is 40% contained, with homeowners still urged to heed evacuation orders, even as some were reduced.

The brush in some areas was so dense that Cal Fire said moisture did not make it into the ground. 

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"We're not going to allow the weather, the increased RH, rainfall to lull us into complacency that we think this fire's out." Day Operations Branch Chief Justin McGough said in an update on Saturday.

13 structures have been destroyed in the Fairview Fire. 

Two women were killed and one other civilian was injured.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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