After a brief respite on Saturday, gusty winds from the north and northeast are expected to return to the Los Angeles area as early as Sunday. That could be the start of up to three wind events in Santa Ana next week, officials said.

Firefighters continue to battle several large wildfires throughout the region, and much of Los Angeles County remains under alert through Friday night.

The dangerous combination of low humidity, bone-dry fuels and shifting winds is complicating efforts to control the wildfires. The 20,000-acre Palisades Fire, fueled overnight by gusts of up to 40 mph, was only 8% contained Friday, while the Eaton Fire, which has burned nearly 14,000 acres in Altadena and Pasadena, was only 8% contained was contained to 3%.

Firefighters hoped Saturday’s lull in winds would help them lay fire lines and improve containment of the two major fires, as well as several other smaller fires across the region, before they break out again. At least 10 people died in the fires, and officials say the death toll is likely to rise.

“It’s more convenient for us and the crews to get into some of these areas with steep, rugged terrain that can be somewhat dangerous with high winds and warmer, drier temperatures,” said Will Powers, a California state spokesman for forestry and transportation Fire protection.

A firefighter who was injured in a fall while working on the Eaton fire Thursday was hospitalized and is stable, officials said Friday.

Kristan Lund, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard, called the upcoming winds a “moderate to strong event” expected to peak Tuesday and trigger new red flag warnings. However, she noted that the worst is likely to be concentrated in Ventura County.

That could give L.A. County firefighters a bit of a break, but it could also raise additional concerns further west in a region already suffering from a lack of resources.