Powerful winds toppled trees, disrupted traffic and whipped up waves along San Diego County beaches, Saturday. Besides the fire danger, the Santa Ana winds caused damage and disruptions. In Escondido, near the San Diego city line, a large mesquite tree was ripped from its roots overnight and f ell onto Sunset Drive, blocking the road. Caretakers for the Sikes Adobe Historic Farmstead called police after seeing on a security camera the tree collapsed near the entrance gate of San Dieguito River Park. No one was injured. Workers at the scene told NBC 7, they had already cleared six fallen trees before sunrise. Dry brush was blown by Santa Ana gusts of 46 mph, Saturday, on Black Mountain just north of homes in Rancho Peñasquitos, October 17, 2026. Gusts reached up to 46 mph on Black Mountain near Rancho Peñasquitos, one the the many inland valley communities impacted over the weekend. Assistant Chief Robert Rezende with the San Diego Fire Department said, “those winds are pushing all this desert heat back over San Diego. Now next week, we’re probably expecting some wet weather again. We’re going to be doing that whiplash.” Along the coast, the offshore Santa Ana winds created unusual conditions for surfers and swimmers. Jim Shubin lives in Encinitas, and spends a lot of time at Moonlight State Beach. “When this offshore big Santa Ana swept in, it just picked up the face of the waves throwing this big sheet of water. It looked like it’s raining,” Shubin said. Swimmers and surfers in the ocean off Moonlight State Beach, Saturday, Encinitas, Calif., October 17, 2026. Volunteers with the Surfrider Foundation spent the morning collecting trash and debris at Moonlight Beach. One of the volunteers, Celeste Clancy, came to help from her home in Leucadia. “This morning was kind of crazy. We live in a town house and there’s trees all around, so I woke up to (all that wind),” she said. Clancy added, “…and the oppressive atmosphere is really noticeable with the heat that we have.” The Santa Ana winds arrived just a week after the county faced the possibility of flooding from the remnants of a tropical storm. Although the latest round of Santa Ana winds appeared to be subsiding, the combination of dry vegetation, heat and strong gusts underscored the potential fire threat whenever offshore winds return. This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication. ...read more read less