Excessive heat warnings will be in effect through Monday in much of the greater Los Angeles area with “dangerously hot conditions” and triple-digit temperatures expected this weekend and into next week, National Weather Service forecasters said.
One warning took effect Tuesday morning in the western San Fernando Valley, and will remain in force until 8 p.m. Monday — three days longer than originally anticipated. Forecasters said the area could see temperatures reaching as high as 118 degrees.
An excessive heat warning was also extended through 8 p.m. Monday in the Santa Clarita Valley, the inland coastal area stretching into downtown Los Angeles, the Santa Monica Mountains Recreational Area, Calabasas, eastern San Fernando Valley, San Gabriel Mountains, San Gabriel Valley, and the 5 and 14 Freeway corridors.
Forecasters said those areas could reach 112 degrees.
The Santa Ana Mountains and foothills and Orange County inland areas were also under excessive heat warnings until 8 p.m. Monday, with temperatures predicted up to 105 degrees.
Even coastal areas will not be immune from the heat. An excessive heat warning is in effect until 8 p.m. Monday for the Malibu Coast and Los Angeles County beaches, along with the Palos Verdes Hills, with some of those areas possibly reaching 96 degrees, according to the NWS.
The Antelope Valley and Antelope Valley foothills will be under an excessive heat warning until 8 p.m. Saturday, with 110-degree heat expected.
A less severe heat advisory will be in place for Orange County coastal areas until 8 p.m. Monday. Temperatures there are anticipated as high as 95 degrees.
“The hottest days with this event are expected to be Friday and Saturday in most areas, and of those two days Friday has the slight edge of being the peak day,” according to the NWS. “Overnight night lows will be warming up as well, especially in the foothills and lower mountain locations where some areas may stay in the 90s much of the night. Not quite as hot overnight for coast and valleys, but even there some warmer valley areas will stay above 80 until well into the overnight hours.”
A cooling trend is not expected to kick in until possibly Tuesday, forecasters said.
The late-summer heat wave, which has baked the Southland for much of the week, has raised fears of heat-related illnesses and possible wildfires.
“A very hot air mass will remain over the region into early next week as strong high pressure aloft over the Western United States will limit onshore flow,” according to the NWS. “Dangerously hot conditions are expected away from the coast, especially in the mountain and foothill locations where overnight low temperatures will cool little from daytime highs.”
The combination of high heat and anticipated low humidity prompted the NWS to issue a red flag warning of heightened fire danger for the Santa Monica Mountains Recreational Area, San Gabriel Mountains, Western Antelope Valley Foothills and the 5 and 14 Freeway corridors until 10 p.m. Saturday.
Forecasters said wind conditions will “limit the potential for classic red flag criteria,” however, “there is a history of large fires with similar weather conditions during this time of the year.”
NWS forecasters said humidity levels could drop to between 8% and 15% in the red flag areas, with little recovery during overnight hours. Meanwhile, temperatures will be soaring well into the triple digits.
“Models are still advertising a slight increase in onshore flow tomorrow (Saturday) that will bring some minimal relief, but still brutally hot, especially in the warmer valleys where it will be another 110+ day there,” the NWS said.
Due to the high heat and heightened fire risk, Malibu’s Trancas Canyon Park and Charmlee Wilderness Park will be closed through Saturday, according to the city.
The excessive heat has also caused power outages throughout Los Angeles County, affecting thousands of customers, according to electrical utility company officials.
Affected neighborhoods include customers on and near the University of Southern California and surrounding areas, including Mount St. Mary’s University, West Adams and Exposition Park, CBS 2 reported.
According to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s website, electrical outages extended as far north as Sylmar, where 160 customers reported power losses and throughout the Inland Empire.
Southern California Edison reported more than 100 outages in communities including Santa Monica, Santa Clarita, Rancho Cucamonga, the Greater Los Angeles area, Santa Ana, Huntington Beach, Redondo Beach and communities in the Antelope Valley.
According to the electrical utility, 10 outages were reported in Orange County, affecting 836 customers, and 77 were reported in Los Angeles, with 4,811 households suffering power losses.
Forecasters noted earlier that the heat wave “is coinciding exactly with the extreme heat wave in 2020, so while we may not break a lot of records with this event, it doesn’t diminish the impacts or lessen the precautions that need to be taken to stay safe. Do not do any hiking or other physical activities except very early in the day and even then use extreme caution and stay well-hydrated.”
Officials warned the public to drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun and check up on relatives and neighbors.
Residents were also urged to never leave children or pets in unattended vehicles, which can reach lethal temperatures in a matter of minutes.