Heat wave sets new records and sparks brush fires as World Series begins
New heat records were set yesterday across Southern California. (Oct. 24, 2017)
Another day of record heat sent temperatures across Southern California into triple digits, sparking several brush fires Tuesday that closed freeway lanes.
Downtown Los Angeles set a new record for the day at 103 degrees, Long Beach and Los Angeles International Airport hit 102 degrees and Burbank hit 101. Among the communities recording new high temperature records for the day were Escondido at 104, San Diego at 97, and Oxnard at 100.
The conditions brought record-breaking heat for the World Series, which began at 5:09 p.m., when the Dodgers faced the Astros in Game 1 at Dodger Stadium. At game time, temperatures hit 103 degrees. Before Tuesday, the hottest World Series game on record was played in Phoenix in 2001, when the Arizona Diamondbacks took on the New York Yankees in 94-degree heat, said Rich Thompson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
Tuesday night’s forecast: 97 degrees.
A brush fire burning near Rancho Cucamonga forced the partial closure of the 15 and 210 freeways as fire crews raced to douse the flames. As of 2 p.m., the 15 was open, but some lanes of the 210 remained closed. No structures were damaged.
Firefighters were also battling a fire off Highway 33 in Ventura County. The blaze grew to 117 acres and was 50% contained by about 9 p.m., said Ventura County Fire Capt. Stan Ziegler. Two firefighters were injured — one was treated for smoke inhalation, another for yellow-jacket stings.
The blaze destroyed a travel trailer on a private property, Ziegler said, but no structures were threatened and no evacuations were ordered.
Highway 33 was closed in both directions. Northbound lanes were closed at Casitas Vista Road and southbound lanes were closed at Creek Road.
“We have approximately 100 firefighters remaining through the night to work on hot spots and increase the containment,” Ziegler said.
Several small brush fires erupted Tuesday, a day of soaring temperatures, low humidity and strong Santa Ana winds — ripe conditions for fire.
A brush fire briefly shut down part of the 118 Freeway in Granada Hills during the morning commute, snarling traffic near Hayvenhurst Avenue. Firefighters doused the half-acre blaze by about 9 a.m., along with a smaller fire that burned on the south side of the freeway in the same area, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.
No one was hurt and no structures were damaged, officials added.
Crews also quickly jumped on a quarter-acre blaze burning in the Hansen Dam Recreation Area and one that damaged two vehicles along Mc Queen Street in Sylmar.
As early as 5 a.m., some cities in Southern California had already topped 90 degrees, said Thompson. Those temperatures — 90 in Van Nuys, 91 in Burbank — were a hint of what was to come, he added.
Red-flag warnings, indicating high fire danger, were issued for much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties, with weather forecasters and firefighters keeping a wary eye on the rising temperatures, low humidity and strong winds.
“Extreme fire behavior is likely if any fire ignition begins … threatening life and property,” read an alert from the National Weather Service. “The public should be very, very careful.”
The winds should start to die off Wednesday, Thompson said, bringing a slight dip in temperatures. The cool-down should continue the rest of the week, which should end with temperatures in the upper 80s or 90s.
“Definitely still warmer for this time of year, but it’ll be an improvement over today,” Thompson said.
Times staff writer Alene Tchekmedyian contributed to this report.
Twitter: @katemather
UPDATES:
10:25 p.m.: This article was updated with new information about temperatures and the fire in Ventura County.
2:45 p.m.: This article was updated with information about new heat records being set.
2:20 p.m.: This article was updated with the reopening of some traffic lanes near a fire near Rancho Cucamonga.
11:55 a.m. This article was updated with details about a fire burning along the 210 Freeway near Rancho Cucamonga.
9:28 a.m.: This article was updated with details about a fire burning near the 118 Freeway and other fires burning in the area.
This article was originally published at 8:35 a.m.
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