Trend to Continue : Warmth Sets New Records

Hunting for a job in a new town is tough enough. But when the waves splash and a warm sun beats down on the beach in February, it can be nearly impossible.

That was the case Wednesday for four friends who just moved to the Newport Beach area from Chicago, via Pensacola, Fla.

Kelly Harrison, 21, Richard Cabe, 25, Brennan McClean, 24, and Adam Pearsall, 24, had plans for job hunting but never got around to it. They wound up eating purple ice bars at the Newport Beach Pier, dreaming the afternoon away.

“We’ll look for a job when it starts raining,” Cabe said, ignoring the fact that rain is unlikely in the near future.

Indeed, Wednesday was a second consecutive record-breaking day in Orange County. The 92-degree reading in San Juan Capistrano shattered the old record of 90 degrees set there in 1981 and was the highest temperature in the country. The 83-degree temperature in Santa Ana on Tuesday broke a county record set in 1907.

Fullerton recorded an 86-degree reading Wednesday, and Santa Ana followed with 85. El Toro and Mission Viejo recorded 82s.

The highs reached a balmy 76 at Newport Beach and Huntington Beach, and the water temperature also rose to 58 degrees, prompting bunches of teen-agers to take to the surf.

The mercury also pushed to 88 degrees in downtown Los Angeles, breaking the previous record of 85 set in 1971.

The high marks the past two days have been remarkable, since high temperatures in Southern California average 68 degrees this time of year. More of the same is predicted through the weekend.

Forecasters said the heat wave is being caused by a high-pressure system that has settled comfortably over the West.

“This pattern is very stable right now,” said Dan Bowman of WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times. “It doesn’t show much chance of changing. It looks like record or near-record temperatures for the next two days.”

Wednesday’s heat wave was bolstered by Santa Ana winds that began blowing at noon. The wind blew steadily at 20 m.p.h. at the beach and gusted to 30 m.p.h.

McClean said he and his three friends had been living in Chicago and attending school but that the “40-below weather” finally got to them, and they escaped to his hometown of Pensacola, Fla. A couple of weeks ago, Harrison and Cabe made the move to Newport Beach. McClean and Pearsall followed three days ago.

They are not particular about a job, so long as it pays the bills.

“But I tell you, it’s tough when the weather is this nice. I really like it here,” McClean said.

Steve Arce, 25, of La Habra was at the beach Wednesday afternoon, cruising in his girlfriend’s black sports car with vanity plates reading MY NIGHT. The gorgeous weather aside, it wasn’t “my day” for Arce.

Arce said he is taking a few days off before his wedding Saturday and that the warm weather lured him to the beach. After driving around for a while, Arce stopped for a beer at a tavern near the pier. While inside, he was ticketed when the parking meter expired.

He ran about 50 yards to try and stop Melinda Rodgers, a Newport Beach parking control officer, from citing him. But he was too late.

Rodgers said she had issued about 60 citations Wednesday, more than usual for a February day.

“We always give out more tickets when the weather is nice,” she said.