Surf, Mercury Up--Way Up : 12-Foot Waves Greet Crowds Fleeing Heat

Don’t pack away the swimsuits and shorts quite yet. And the sweaters can stay in mothballs a bit longer. Other parts of the country may be enjoying a traditional fall, but this is California and it’s October, the fifth month of summer.

As usual, a high-pressure system to the east has sent temperatures spiraling upward. It’s a Santa Ana condition, only without the wind. The heat, of course, sent Orange County residents to the beaches, where they were met by 10- to 12-foot surf generated by an Antarctic storm.

Big Surf to Remain

And the National Weather Service said both conditions will be around for most of the weekend.

“We had more people on the beach and in the water than usual today because of the heat,” Huntington State Beach lifeguard Tom Wickes said. “But these people aren’t Hawaiians, and most of the surfers and swimmers had sense enough to get out of the way when the sets began running above eight feet.”

The Weather Service warned that these breakers, spawned by an intense storm system centered on the Antarctic shelf, would keep slamming into southward-facing beaches for the next day or two. They urged coastal property owners in exposed areas to protect structures, especially at high tide, which will occur at midday today and Saturday. Westward-facing beaches and those in the surf “shadow” of the offshore islands should experience only minor increases in surf size.

It is also dangerous, the Weather Service said, to fish or even to watch the waves from rocks while high surf conditions continue because “very large waves can suddenly sweep across previously dry areas.”

Just how powerful the waves can be was learned by a Cypress man when he and a companion were tossed from their 19-foot powerboat, which capsized and smashed to pieces in the surf off Golden West Street in Huntington Beach, said lifeguard Ken Kramer.

Daniel Eyre, 27, and Ed Abeyga were about 100 yards offshore, Kramer said, when they tried to escape a large wave bearing down on them. The boat was rolled over and the two men, who suffered minor injuries, were washed up on the beach, where bystanders helped them.

A small craft advisory for five- to six-foot breakers was in effect for the entrance to Oceanside Harbor throughout the day Thursday, and yachtsmen were warned to avoid any close shoreline approach until the seas subside.

Lifeguard departments up and down the Orange County coast were placing additional personnel on duty and standby in anticipation of large crowds that may show up over the weekend.

‘Nightmare’ Predicted

“It’s going to be a nightmare down here if the heat and the surf keep up,” said Tim Dorsey, a lifeguard at Seal Beach.

Meanwhile, a flow of hot air from the deserts elbowed its way into Orange County, sending the mercury to 100 degrees at San Juan Capistrano, a temperature only two degrees short of the county’s record for Oct. 3, set in 1958.

It was 98 in El Toro and Santa Ana and there was little respite at the beaches, where the thermometer reached 88 degrees. Forecasters predicted only a minor cooling trend during the rest of the weekend, while skies were expected to remain clear and sunny.

Weekend visitors to the San Bernardino and San Gabriel mountains can look for clear nights and sunny days turning a bit cloudy each afternoon, with highs in the upper 70s. There also was a possibility of a few brief thundershowers Saturday, the forecasters said.

Those who venture into the Sierra can prepare for overnight lows near freezing, with westerly winds gusting to 30 m.p.h. and a slight chance of showers by Sunday.

Deserts were expected to remain hot and dry most of the time, with the chance of a thunderstorm or two late Saturday, the Weather Service said. High desert temperatures were expected to reach the mid-90s, while low deserts should be in the 100-degree range each afternoon.

Times staff writer Ted Thackrey Jr. contributed to this story.