Heat wave reaches ‘the tail end’ in Southern California
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A man walks hand-in-hand with the sun as it rises over the Pacific Ocean at dawn Saturday, Dec. 25, 2011, in Malibu, Calif.
Updated at 1:01 AM CDT on Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2011, with new forecast.
What could be better than a sun shower? This weekend, a sun shower came to Southern California and brought a record-breaking temperature.
The temperature in Santa Monica reached 114 degrees early this morning, shattering the previous record for a time of record of 111 degrees, set in 1952.
What was not as pleasant was the wind, which reached a temperature of 49 degrees in Montecito, and gusts topping 50 mph in Pasadena.
“It was a very cool morning in Santa Monica, and a very warm morning in Montecito,” said John Henson, meteorologist for the National Weather Service/El Nino Center in Pasadena.
Here are the details…
HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?
The National Weather Service forecasted a strong storm surge of up to six feet in Santa Barbara County and a wind of 45 mph at the mouth of the Santa Ynez River near Montecito, on an approaching frontal system. The wind gusts could reach 50 mph along the coast.
In the afternoon, the Santa Monica forecast called for up to 6 inches of rain and strong winds that could whip up to 50 mph. By the time midnight rolled around, the forecast called for a wind reaching 50 mph and a maximum rainfall of two to three inches.
The National Weather Service/El Nino Center in Pasadena noted the winds at the Montecito shoreline had been downgraded to 29 mph, while winds along the coast reached 45 mph, causing beach erosion. The front was coming from the north, according to the forecast.
WHAT CAN HEAT SEE?
The temperature in Santa Monica hit