The Red Flag Warning puts Bay Area firefighters and residents on high alert for wildfire danger

SANTA ROSA, Calif. (KGO) — In the North Bay, firefighters are on high alert for wildfires throughout the region. A red flag warning goes into effect Thursday evening, but strong winds were already building, increasing concern among homeowners.

Strong winds were blowing in Sonoma County on Thursday, indicating red flag conditions. CAL FIRE's Santa Rosa station has posted a red banner to alert the public to the high fire danger.

“With warning signs looming, the concern is that fuels have had all summer to harden and be ready to burn. So when you add wind to that element, it affects fire behavior,” said CAL FIRE chief Ben Nicholls.

Chief Nicholls says the humidity is dropping quickly.

“In the last few hours alone we have already seen a 30% drop in our relative humidity across the region,” he said.

SCHEDULE: The red flag warning goes into effect late Thursday. This is where the risk of fire is highest

It all adds up to the perfect recipe for wildfire. But CAL FIRE says it is staffed and ready and has additional resources, including a response team from Humboldt County.

Two firefighting helicopters capable of dropping 2,000 gallons of water are available at the department's air assault bases in Sonoma and Napa.

The CAL FIRE forces are constantly in training and this unit was ready for a fire operation.

Additional signs are posted throughout the city alerting the public to the high risk of fire.

“It’s concerning, even though the weather is nice,” Matt Gilster said.

MORE: PGPublic safety shutdowns are in effect for some Bay Area counties

For Santa Rosa residents, dry and windy conditions may bring back memories of the Tubbs Fire in October 2017, a firestorm that destroyed thousands of homes.

“When you have days like this, memories of Tubbs just come back, everyone who lives here knows that,” Gilster said.

Tim Bell showed us more than just his duffel bag – he has food and supplies for his family ready to go in the back seat of his Jeep.

“I have two little kids, I work at Rohnert Park, so it's always in the back of my mind that I have to run back to get everyone,” Bell said.

CAL FIRE urges residents to create an evacuation plan in the event of a wildfire. Have a travel bag with essentials, medication and important documents ready just in case.

VIDEO: Oakland, Berkeley residents prepare for possible wildfires and wind damage

It was a beautiful Thursday evening in the East Bay hills, and you would never guess that a red flag warning would go into effect.

“I don’t think it’s probably talked about enough because I didn’t know about it until you talked about it,” said Laura Schwanz, who was hiking when we spoke to her.

But just because some we spoke to in the Berkeley hills weren't aware of the possibility of high winds and low humidity this week doesn't mean they weren't already preparing for it.

“I did things like clear piles of pine needles from the house and cut down branches that came close to the house. “I don’t really want to cut down whole trees that are near my house,” said Brad Holden, who lives in the hills of Oakland.

“Actually, in this last major fire, we were in the fire area, we were evacuated and the firefighters actually used our street to spray the Claremont Hotel with water,” Schwanz said.

MORE: How to prepare to evacuate after a wildfire

Neighbors near Grizzly Peak Boulevard in Berkeley say they feel much more prepared since they recently cleared a number of plants. City officials arrived and recommended removing the plants because they contained flammable oils.

“Whenever there is strong wind, we worry,” said Marilyn Nasatir of Berkeley.

Luckily for Marilyn and her husband David, the trees and power lines were still standing Thursday evening. We didn't feel any strong gusts of wind.

They are now hoping the weather stays this way, but are aware of what could happen as they have evacuated twice over the years.

“But at night it’s scary. Tomorrow I will be home and we will know what is happening and we will be ready to do what we have to do,” Marilyn said.