Health worries from the heat, fire hazards and surf dangers are all threatening the Southland Friday as the summer season’s first heat wave went into its third day.
Temperatures are slated to reach triple digits in inland Orange County and L.A. County’s San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys Friday and Saturday, but a cooling trend is expected starting Sunday.
While much of the Southland swelters, you wouldn’t know it at local beach areas socked in overnight and Friday morning with fog and overcast skies, keeping temperatures there to the mid-70s at most.
“The combination of hot temperatures, widespread humidity in the single digits and teens, and gusty onshore winds will bring elevated fire danger … across inland areas,” said a statement posted on the National Weather Service website.
The NWS also warned of heat-related illnesses, urging residents to drink plenty of water, avoid outdoor work in high heat, and to never leave children, the elderly, or pets in a closed car parked in hot weather.
Friday’s highs are expected to be in the 70s along the coast, low 80s in metropolitan Los Angeles, and 100 in Woodland Hills, Saugus and Yorba Linda.
Along the L.A. County coast, a beach hazards statement will be in effect through this evening, replacing the more serious high surf advisory that was in force until late Thursday night. But despite the downgrade, NWS forecasters warned of dangerous rip currents and surf of between 3 and 6 feet.
“There is an increased risk of ocean drowning. Rip currents can pull swimmers and surfers out to sea. Sneaker waves can suddenly wash people off of beaches and rock jetties,” warned an NWS statement.
The NWS urged beachgoers to exercise caution in and near the water, to never swim alone, and to remain near lifeguard towers.
“If caught in a rip current, swim parallel to the shore” until able to break free, the statement said.
The NWS forecast sunny skies in L.A. County, once the fog clears, and highs of 72 in LAX, 74 in Avalon. 83 in downtown L.A., 85 in Long Beach; 93 in San Gabriel; 94 in Burbank and on Mount Wilson; 96 in Pasadena; 100 in Woodland Hills and Saugus; 104 in Palmdale; and 105 in Lancaster.
In Orange County, highs were forecast to be 74 in Laguna Beach; 75 in Newport Beach and San Clemente; 87 in Irvine; 89 in Anaheim and Mission Viejo; and 93 in Yorba Linda and Fullerton.
A cooling trend will start Sunday, when many inland communities are expected to be several degrees cooler than today and Saturday. Downtown L.A. for instance is forecast to go from 83 today to 79 Sunday; Yorba Linda from 93 to 86; Woodland Hills and Saugus from 100 to 92; and Lancaster from 105 to 99.
—City News Service