Southern California braces for another September heat wave
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SACRAMENTO • The hot, dry air didn’t dampen the spirits of people visiting and volunteering in the hot and dry Southland in August, the state’s official heat index came in at 100.
That makes Southland’s official summer temperature record, which was set in 1878, the warmest on record. The hottest temperature recorded in the Southland is 111 degrees, in Sacramento in 1909.
State scientists said yesterday that August did not break records, but the hot conditions were just as bad as that summer.
They’ve been tracking the hot and dry weather from their office in Rancho Cucamonga, and said that August was the warmest since record keeping began in 1878.
They said that the mercury reached at least 101 degrees in Orange County, where the high temperature made for the third consecutive day with no rain in the region.
“We’re still seeing high temperatures and record-level high temperatures up and down the state,” said Brian Curran, the state climatologist. “We’re still in the middle. We are a little bit above average in many cases.”
An air mass pushed south from the Pacific to California in August. Last month, that cold front helped boost Southern California to its second hottest August on record. September already is hot and dry, though, and the state’s official heat index could break the old record.
The mercury hit a balmy 72 degrees Monday, breaking the 78-year-old record, and then soared to the 100-degree range for parts of the day. The current record is 96 degrees set in 1908 at the South Central Airport in Anaheim, where the heat did not break the record.
The state climatologist said the hot weather is typical for August, though it was still cool at night where he lived in Orange County.
“I’ve been able to stay cool through the day as long as I’m not in my car,” said Curran. “I’ve been able to sleep without being warm.”
He said that when it’s hot and dry, residents usually don’t need to turn on air conditioning. The Southland is often in its worst shape
