When the air is warm and dry, transpiration and evaporation also suck water out of the plants and soil. That leaves dry vegetation that can provide fuel for flying embers to spread wildfires, as the Los Angeles area saw in early January.

The Los Angles Police Department said "a male was heard stating a suspect was 'attempting to light a fire'" near the Kenneth Fire.

A new fire — the Kenneth Fire — erupted Thursday afternoon, so far spreading across 960 acres in Los Angeles and Ventura counties. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection says that blaze is 35% contained.

See updates on Los Angeles County wildfires as flames continue to threaten homes in Pacific Palisades, Altadena and elsewhere.