S.D. Basks in Warmth of Santa Ana Winds While East in Deep Freeze

San Diegans and the rest of Southern California basked in record-setting warmth Saturday while most of the nation--from the Northern plains south to Florida and east to New England--shivered in record-shattering cold.

And Christmas Day promises more warm temperatures for San Diego.

The high at Lindbergh Field reached 78 degrees, tying the previous high temperature recorded for Dec. 23, set in 1899. With continued warm days expected through at least Wednesday, today’s reading could very well top the record temperature--also 78--for Christmas Eve day, National Weather Service forecaster Dan Atkin said Saturday.

Inland county readings were even warmer Saturday, with a 90 at Fallbrook, 89 at Escondido, 86 at La Mesa, 85 in Poway and 83 in Santee. An 85-degree high at Los Angeles broke the previous record of 82.

A large area of high pressure over Idaho and Utah continues to divert Pacific storms from the jet stream north into Canada instead of California, creating winds that blow from the east over mountains into the state. The air warms as it descends over the mountains, evaporating clouds and creating what is commonly known as Santa Ana conditions.

The present weather is strengthened by a second area of high pressure over the West Coast, resulting in the clear, sunny days and cool, clear nights. The normal high for this time of year is 66 degrees in San Diego.

There will be some gusty winds in the mountains and canyon areas below passes, with gusts up to 25 miles per hour but not reaching the 60- to 70-m.p.h. levels that caused havoc on Southern California freeways during an earlier Santa Ana this month, Atkin said.

Coastal lows will range from the low- to mid-40s, with temperatures dipping into the mid-30s in the coldest county locations with a touch of frost possible. But Atkin said there are no frost or agricultural advisories in the short-range forecasts.

While the weather pattern should revert to near normal by mid-week, with coastal clouds during the night and morning and lower temperatures, there still appears to be no rain in the the seven- to 10-day forecasts, Atkin said.

That increases the probability that the end of the month will see another record set: 1989 as the driest year on record. Only 2.82 inches of rain has fallen since Jan. 1. The driest year on record was 1863, with 3.02 inches.