Gusts Blamed for Blackouts : Pesky Winds Will Wane, Usher in a Cool Weekend

Winds that snapped tree limbs and knocked out electric power in parts of the Los Angeles Basin Thursday should die away to no more than a breeze today, according to forecasters who advised Southern Californians to prepare for a slightly cooler--but dry--weekend.

About 4,000 customers of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power were left in the dark Wednesday night and Thursday morning as circuits were knocked out by winds gusting to 50 m.p.h.

DWP spokesman Ed Freudenburg said some of the damage was due to wind-broken tree branches that fell across power lines.

“As fast as we got power restored in one area,” he said, “other customers reported new problems.”

Nonetheless, he said, most customers’ lights were burning brightly again by early morning, and no major injuries or damage was reported.

Cary Schudy, meteorologist-spokesman for Earth Environment Science, a private forecasting firm based in San Francisco, said the winds will die by tonight.

“There are two storm systems in the desert Southwest right now,” he explained, “and a ridge of high pressure lying across the Pacific Northwest. This is causing the dry Santa Ana wind to sweep in from the desert.

“But this condition will diminish as the weekend goes on and a weak disturbance should be able to slip down from Alaska, over the top of the pressure ridge, arriving here accompanied by partially cloudy skies. But I just can’t see any rain on the way.”

The National Weather Service, however, offered mild disagreement, saying there was a chance of showers from the new system Sunday afternoon or evening.

But everyone agreed it will be a bit cooler.

High temperature at Los Angeles Civic Center Thursday was 73 degrees, with relative humidity ranging from 13% to 19%, and forecasters said it should be two or three degrees cooler today--but just as dry.

A frost warning was in effect for agricultural portions of San Diego County where temperatures were expected to be in the mid-20s overnight, with readings all the way down to 10 degrees in the coldest spots.