Yes, it’s autumn. Yes, it will be hot – like summertime hot – in San Diego County this week.
San Diego enjoyed a fall-like cool-down last week (at least by Southern California standards) but according to NBC 7’s First Alert Forecast, hot, dry conditions return this week.
“If you were missing summer already, well, you’re in luck,” NBC 7’s Ashley Matthews said Monday morning. “We’re going to see well above-average temperatures for this week, especially Tuesday through Friday.”
“Very dry conditions, so fire weather is going to be elevated as well,” Matthews added.
The National Weather Service said the warming trend gets fully underway Monday, with the heat wave peaking through mid-week.
The NWS said a heat advisory will be in effect from 11 a.m. Tuesday until 5 p.m. Friday, bringing highs in the 80s near the coast and temps in the 90s for inland areas. The valleys will see temps around 100.
“It’s going to be dry, hot with very low humidity, as well as Santa Ana winds gusting from the northeast at about 25 to 30 mph inland and in our mountains,” Matthews explained. “All of this increases fire danger.”
The NWS said locals should limit their time outside during the extreme heat. San Diego County is running some cool zones – with COVID-19 modifications – so if you’re looking for a respite from the heat, here’s some information on those spots.
But, San Diego fans of fall, not all hope is lost for possible (light) sweater weather. We may get some of that by the weekend.
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“By the weekend, we should get a little bit of relief from those temperatures,” Matthews said.
Hot, dry weather in October is nothing new for San Diego. The conditions this time of year can sometimes create risky fire weather; this happened in October 2003 with the devastating Cedar Fire and in October 2007 with the Witch Fire.
California’s 2020 wildfire season has been one for the history books. Since the beginning of the year, more than 8,400 wildfires in the state have scorched more than 4 million acres, according the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. There have been 31 deaths related to California’s 2020 wildfires and more than 9,200 buildings have been destroyed.
Last month, the August Complex in the Coast Range between San Francisco and Oregon became California’s largest wildfire on record.
And now with the October heat, firefighters warn that California’s deadly wildfire season may not be over.
As of Oct. 8, more than 13,800 firefighters remained on the lines of 21 major wildfires across the state, Cal Fire said.
