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Winds that stoked fire in the Inland Empire on Thursday will calm on Friday, Feb. 19, before shifting weather patterns create gusts that may batter portions of Southern California over the weekend, meteorologists said.

The state is sandwiched between a ridge of high pressure to the west, over the Pacific, and a trough of low pressure to the east responsible for snow and freezing rain in places like Texas, Massachusetts, North Carolina and Kentucky, according to the National Weather Service. But that extreme weather system would deliver, at most, a “glancing blow” to Southern California, NWS meteorologist David Sweet said.

Gusts peaked at 60 mph at the Magic Mountain Truck Trail in Santa Clarita, 59 mph in Browns Canyon, north of Chatsworth and 45 mph in Porter Ranch. Winds reached speeds of 45 mph in Rancho Cucamonga, and 49 mph in Chino Hills and Fremont Canyon, east of Orange

“At this point, the Northeast winds have mostly abated,” NWS meteorologist for the San Diego region, Brandt Maxwell, said at about 4:20 p.m. Thursday.

Conditions that fanned flames at a homeless encampment in Riverside and a recycling business in Ontario waned Thursday, according to NWS reports. Meteorologist forecast a calm day on Friday, with highs of 71 in Rancho Cucamonga, 73 in Fullerton, and 74 in Van Nuys and Riverside.

Northwest winds develop overnight ahead of the weekend, bringing gusts ranging between 30 mph and 50 mph by Saturday along the I-5 corridor, in the Santa Clarita Valley, and further north in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties, Sweet said. Winds shift direction to the Northeast on Sunday. That will mean comparable gusts, with warmer temperatures, in the San Fernando Valley, Santa Monica Mountains and Ventura County.

Wind advisories may be likely over the weekend, but “the San Gabriel Valley should mostly be spared,” Sweet said. Coastal regions across Southern California may also see milder conditions over the weekend.

Mountain and passes in Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties will also experience gusty conditions on Saturday and Sunday, Maxwell said. Temperatures in those areas should gradually rise, except for some mild cooling on Saturday.

Skies should remain clear through next week, according to NWS reports. Rain was unlikely until at least the end of next week, Maxwell said.

Time to talk West Coast precip! Curious where coastal offices stand in terms of seasonal rainfall since Oct 1? Check out the graphic below

The N-S divide stands out starkly, with the PacNW being the noticeable standout, and areas south considerably drier. #CAwx #ORwx #WAwx pic.twitter.com/q5Jzo8muuD

— NWS San Diego (@NWSSanDiego) February 18, 2021