Southern California sweated through another scorcher Wednesday amid an extended heat advisory and saw temperatures soar across the region.
Cooler weather is around the corner, but an upcoming weather system could bring fierce winds in some areas and increase the risk of large wildfires, forecasters say.
Meanwhile, Wednesday’s heat advisory remains in effect through 8 p.m. across Orange County’s inland areas — including Anaheim, Santa Ana, Irvine, Garden Grove, Orange, Fullerton and Mission Viejo — as well as the Inland Empire and San Diego County’s valleys and mountains.
Around 4 p.m., temperatures hit 118 degrees in Death Valley National Park, 113 degrees at Palm Springs International Airport and in eastern Riverside, 104 in Palmdale, 103 in San Bernardino, 100 in Santa Clarita, 95 in Thousand Oaks, 93 in Burbank and Northridge, 91 in Yorba Linda, 90 in Altadena, 88 in West Covina, 86 in Orange, 84 in downtown L.A. and Eagle Rock and 83 in Fullerton.
Temperatures at that time were cooler along the coast — reaching 67 at the Santa Monica Pier, 70 at San Diego International Airport, 72 in Seal Beach, 73 at Los Angeles International Airport and 76 in Huntington Beach.
“Hot temperatures may cause heat illnesses,” the National Weather Service office in San Diego warned. “Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun and check up on relatives and neighbors.”
The weather service office in Las Vegas issued an “extreme heat warning” for Death Valley National Park and the Mojave Desert — including the Interstate 15 corridor to Las Vegas — as well as areas around the Colorado River, including Lake Havasu City. The warning is in effect through 10 p.m. Thursday.
The heat wave was being caused by high pressure dominating Southern California, the weather service office in San Diego said.
Most of Southern California was expected to start cooling down Thursday, although it is expected to remain hot away from the coast.
Highs on Thursday could reach 98 in Palmdale, 97 in San Bernardino, 95 in Woodland Hills, 94 in Santa Clarita, 93 in Ontario and Paso Robles, 92 in Riverside, 86 in El Cajon, 85 in downtown Los Angeles and Anaheim, and 80 in Irvine. Death Valley could hit 120 degrees; Needles, 114; Palm Springs, 112; and the Owens Valley, around 100.
Temperatures in the Los Angeles metropolitan area should return to normal for the season by Friday, as will the typical “June Gloom low clouds,” the National Weather Service office in Oxnard said, “with extra gloomy conditions on tap for early next week.”
By Friday, an area of low pressure is expected to arrive in Southern California, which will also bring unseasonably strong winds from the west and northwest.
There could be gusts of about 60 mph in inland mountains, such as along the Grapevine section of Interstate 5 and the Santa Ynez Mountains.
“Isolated power outages, downed trees, and increased risk for large wildfires (are) possible with the strong winds,” the weather service in Oxnard said.
Wildfire risk is expected to remain elevated through Saturday in places including the Grapevine, the Antelope Valley, the Santa Ynez Mountains down to the Santa Barbara County coast, the inland Santa Barbara County mountains and the San Luis Obispo County interior valleys.
The winds and choppy seas will cause hazardous boating conditions for small vessels through the weekend, “especially during the afternoon and evening,” the weather service in Oxnard said.
Fire weather warnings were issued for the Eastern Sierra and western Nevada, including Reno and Carson City.
The weather service office in Reno issued a red flag fire weather warning for Thursday afternoon through Friday night for Alpine and Mono counties (including Mammoth Lakes and Bridgeport) and eastern Lassen County.
Much of Southern California sweated through a hot Tuesday. Temperatures maxed out at 102 degrees in Woodland Hills, 100 in Chatsworth and Ojai, 99 in Lancaster, 98 in Palmdale, 97 in Northridge, 95 in Van Nuys and Paso Robles, 94 in Westlake Village and Fillmore, 92 in Burbank, 91 in San Gabriel, 89 in downtown Los Angeles and 85 in Long Beach.
