Residents north of Sunset Boulevard face elevated wildfire risk and potential parking restrictions as the National Weather Service forecasts a "long and dangerous" heatwave starting Wednesday, July 22, with temperatures forecast to reach 85 to 105 degrees across non-coastal areas of Southern California.
Some spots could hit 110 degrees. The heat is forecast to persist through Thursday, July 23, and possibly into the weekend, with the NWS office in Oxnard warning of "major heat risk" by Saturday, July 25. Overnight temperatures in the interior foothills and valleys are forecast to stay in the 70s, offering little relief.
This is the second dangerous heat event to hit Beverly Hills, Bel Air, and Holmby Hills in less than two weeks. The prior heatwave peaked between Tuesday, July 14, and Thursday, July 16.
Wildfire risk in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone
The NWS warned of critical fire weather conditions in interior areas from Tuesday, July 21, through Monday, July 27. For Beverly Hills, that threat centers on the canyon neighborhoods north of Sunset Boulevard, which the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection designates a "Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone."
That zone includes roughly 1,640 parcels and about 5,000 residents, according to figures Beverly Hills Fire Chief Greg Barton cited during a Trousdale neighborhood evacuation drill in November 2025.
During extreme fire weather conditions, the city restricts parking on certain streets north of Sunset to keep evacuation routes clear and allow firefighting equipment access, according to the city's fire hazard information page.
The city of Beverly Hills had not issued a public statement specific to the July 22 heatwave as of Sunday, July 20.
How to prepare
The Beverly Hills Fire Department maintains pre-determined evacuation routes on its website at beverlyhills.org/182. Residents can find their emergency zone by entering their address at the city's Genasys Protect zone-finder tool.
To receive emergency alerts, residents can text BEVHILLS to 888777 and separately text BHPDALERT to 888777. The city's Disaster Hotline is 310-550-4680.
During the July 14–16 heat event, Los Angeles County opened more than 100 cooling centers and ran air-conditioned buses to reach people without access to cooling. County cooling center locations are listed at ready.lacounty.gov/heat.
"When the actual time to evacuate happens, there's not enough time at that point. It's too late to get what you need to evacuate safely," Barton said at the November 2025 evacuation drill, urging residents to prepare plans before fire weather arrives. The NWS echoed that message on Sunday, July 19, advising residents to change outdoor plans and find places to stay cool ahead of Wednesday's heat.
