Southland may experience record high Christmas temperatures

Christmas just might bring record high temperatures to the Southland.

It’s so warm and dry that forecasters have issued a red flag fire warning through Thursday evening for much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

The record high for Christmas Day in downtown L.A. was 85 degrees, reached in 1980. Meteorologist Carol Smith with the National Weather Service in Oxnard said the temperature is forecast to meet that mark on Wednesday.

The low in downtown Los Angeles Wednesday morning was 46 degrees, meaning the temperature might jump roughly 40 degrees through the day.

In Long Beach, where the Christmas record was set at 81 degrees in 1972, the high Wednesday is expected to reach 83.

Burbank hit 85 degrees on this date in 1980 and Smith said Wednesday is also forecast to be 85 degrees.

“I think pretty much every location will be close,” Smith said.

A wind advisory is in effect for parts of the Southland. Gusts in some of the valleys may reach 35 to 40 miles per hour and 45 to 50 miles per hour in some mountain areas.

“For today, we’re also looking at some wind over the coastal areas from the L.A. coast, from Malibu to the Hollywood Hills, all those passes and canyons along the coast line there,” Smith said, adding that the Ventura County coast also has a wind advisory in effect.

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