If you’re a shivering New Yorker, this weekend is shaping up to be just what you’re dreaming of in sunny Southern California.
Santa Ana winds will blow across the Southland, keeping the region hot and dry, possibly threatening vulnerable groups but without raising any major risk of wildfire, forecasters said.
Lifeguards on Southland beaches will be ready as temperatures on the sand should hover around 83 degrees. Crowds and heavy traffic along the coast are expected for the last full weekend before Halloween.
Other parts of the country will be relatively mild but clearly heading into winter. The low temperature in New York should be down to about 43 tonight after a high of only 60 – not exactly an eastern cold snap, but cool enough to make some residents think of moving west.
Temperatures in downtown Los Angeles and other inland areas Saturday and Sunday are expected to be in the mid to upper 80s and in the 90s in the valleys, according to a National Weather Service statement.
“Valley and foothill locations will see an increased risk of heat- related illnesses, especially for the homeless, the elderly, infants, outdoor workers and those participating in outdoor activities,” it said, adding that gusty offshore winds are possible in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties through Saturday.
Temperatures will be 10-15 degrees above normal in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, but no community is expected to reach the hundreds, NWS meteorologist Robbie Munroe said in a telephone interview from his monitoring station in Oxnard.
“Some” fire danger will exist, but it is not regarded as elevated because a humidity level of above 15 percent is expected, he said.
The National Weather Service forecast highs of 74 Friday, 79 Saturday in San Clemente; 76 Friday, 78 Saturday on Mount Wilson; 76 Friday, 80 Saturday in Newport Beach; 78 Friday, 82 Saturday in Laguna Beach; 78 Friday, 84 Saturday in Avalon; 79 Friday, 81 Saturday in Palmdale; 79 Friday, 85 Saturday at LAX; 80 Friday, 82 Saturday in Lancaster; 81 Friday, 87 Saturday in Mission Viejo; 82 Friday, 89 Saturday in San Gabriel; 82 Friday, 90 Saturday in Long Beach; 83 Friday, 88 Saturday in Irvine; 83 Friday, 90 Saturday in downtown L.A.; 84 Friday, 89 Saturday in Anaheim; 84 Friday, 90 Saturday in Pasadena; 85 Friday, 91 Saturday in Burbank and Fullerton; 86 Friday, 88 Saturday in Saugus; 87 Friday, 92 Saturday in Yorba Linda; and 87 Friday, 93 Saturday in Woodland Hills.
Sunday’s temperatures will fall marginally in some communities, rise marginally or stay the same in others. Monday’s highs will fall back to today’s levels in some areas and dip slightly lower in others.
But whatever happens in the Southland’s weather, Hurricane Patricia will not be a factor. After making landfall in Mexico later Friday, it will turn in a direction away from Southern California, said NWS meteorologist Scott Sukup.
—City News Service