Clearly, Winds Give County a Real High

Santa Ana winds massaged Orange County on Tuesday with balmy, desert-spawned air currents under a clear blue sky, boosting temperatures as high as 86 degrees in San Juan Capistrano--the highest recorded in the 48 adjacent states, according to the National Weather Service.

The temperature was at least 3 degrees lower than the record for this date in Orange County, but it was unusually high for this time of year, said Marianne Miller, whose son, Jeff, is the volunteer who reports the city’s official temperatures to the National Weather Service from the family’s home in San Juan Capistrano.

Miller takes over the reporting duties when her son is away at college, and she reported Tuesday’s high.

“I was in the house all morning, and I was surprised when I went out this afternoon and did the weather,” she said. “I knew it was warm, but not that warm. I thought it would be around 80. It was a gorgeous, beautiful day here, real clear.”

WeatherData, which provides forecasts for The Times, reported that more unseasonably warm weather is in store for Orange County today, but the desert winds are predicted to be somewhat tamer.

“It will be more like breezes on Wednesday,” said Patricia Cooper, a WeatherData meteorologist. “Temperatures should still be warm, maybe up to the 80s again.”

On Tuesday, the Santa Anas whisked away an overnight chill, and by noon Orange County looked more like early May than late November. Thermometers climbed into the mid-80s, even along parts of the coast. In San Clemente, the temperature was 83 degrees at 1 p.m., according to WeatherData.

The winds, blowing toward the sea, gusted up to 23 m.p.h. and, lifeguards said, they caused a celebration among surfers.

Queues of Cars

“The winds hold the waves a little better--give them a better shape for a longer time,” said lifeguard Gus Avila at Huntington State Beach. “There are many, many surfers out here today. Not too many people are walking or lying on the beach because the wind is blowing the sand.”

On streets around Orange County shopping centers, there were queues of cars bearing holiday shoppers, but highway officials reported no major wind-related accidents. The mellow weather prompted many convertible owners to lower the lids as they took to the highways.

“This is great,” said George Rebella, manager of John Wayne Airport, as he described the weather there. “No problems. No smog. The air is nice and clean.”

Elsewhere in Orange County, officials said, the winds prompted the usual alerts for fire danger, but the breezes did not contribute to any blazes during the day. Officials also said they knew of no serious damage, such as collapsing walls or buildings, that could be blamed on the wind.

“So far we have nothing in the way of problems that are wind-connected,” said Kathleen Cha, public information officer for the Orange County Fire Department. She said the department was on a special preparedness level because of the potential danger to wind-dried foliage.

Dangers Increase

“Many people don’t realize it, but we’re still in the fire season,” Cha said. “The fire season began very early this year--back in March--and it’s still continuing. And it will continue until we’ve had 2 to 3 inches of rain.

“So we have to be very careful during these winds. Vegetation dries out, and the fire dangers increase. People should remember that tossing out just one cigarette could cause very serious fires at this time of year.”

Fire departments in Garden Grove, Buena Park, Fullerton, Anaheim and Orange were also on alert because of the winds Tuesday.

WeatherData said the Santa Ana condition stemmed from a high pressure area over the hot Nevada desert. The pressure area circulated winds across the desert, over the mountains and into the valleys of Orange County.

The already warm air became warmer yet because it naturally compresses as it descends from the mountains, WeatherData meteorologists pointed out.