Sizzling 98 Sends 700,000 to Shore

A third day of record-breaking heat sparked a small brush fire Saturday and sent 700,000 people to local beaches, where lifeguards averted three near-drownings and police were on guard after two violent brawls at beaches Friday.

In Los Angeles, a high of 98 at the Civic Center broke the old record of 91 for March 26 set in 1986. Los Angeles International Airport had a high of 95, which broke an all-time record for the entire month of March.

In San Diego, the temperature at Lindbergh Field hit 93 degrees at noon Saturday, shattering an old record of 82 degrees for the same date in 1923.

The stifling heat was brought on by Santa Ana winds that helped reverse the usual flow of cooling ocean breezes over the city, instead bringing hot air from the desert.

Forecasters said relief from the heat is in sight, with temperatures dropping 15 or 20 degrees today and Monday as cooler marine air blankets the area.

As Southern California sweltered, residents in some areas of Los Angeles were rattled awake by an earthquake early Saturday, but there were no reports of damage or injuries, officials said.

The quake hit at 6:54 a.m. and measured 3.9 on the open-ended Richter scale, said Robert Finn, a spokesman for the Caltech Seismology Laboratory. Its epicenter was in the ocean 3 miles southwest of Malibu, but it was not strongly felt.

Brush Fires Quelled

The parched conditions contributed to a brush fire near the Scholl Canyon Golf Course east of Glendale that burned 20 acres before being quelled by firefighters.

Meanwhile, crews in northern San Diego County were mopping up after a 100-acre fire in rugged terrain Friday.

Firefighters said they were on guard for more brush fires because of high winds expected to kick up this afternoon and Monday.

Lifeguards said they could use a rest after handling nearly 100 rescues Saturday, including three close-calls in which swimmers nearly drowned.

Bob Schroeder, a senior ocean lifeguard for Los Angeles County, said two swimmers in Santa Monica Bay were taken to hospitals Saturday after being revived by lifeguards who pulled them from the surf.

Epileptic Seizure

He said one had suffered an epileptic seizure and the other was “a poor swimmer who got himself into trouble.”

Lifeguard Capt. Steve Voorhees said southern-area beaches from San Pedro to Playa del Rey were “very mellow” but that one near-drowning occurred off El Segundo.

In Long Beach, 27 swimmers were rescued and eight people were given first aid after stepping on sting rays, bottom-dwelling creatures that unexpectedly showed up in great numbers at the beaches there.

A lifeguard spokesman in Long Beach said the sting ray population “seems to be pretty big right now and it’s very unusual.”

Sheriff’s deputies and police reported well-behaved crowds Saturday after quelling a series of brawls and rowdiness Friday sparked by gang members and teen-agers with “spring break fever.”