Facing the Cold Facts: Worst Is Yet to Come : Weather: Snow hits O.C. beaches and temperatures hit the 20s. Forecasters say the big chill will get chillier.

Snowflakes fell along the oceanfront from the Palos Verdes Peninsula south to San Clemente Friday as Orange County’s $250-million agricultural industry braced for more near-freezing temperatures and the homeless launched early their daily search for shelter.

The snow showers--falling in flakes, landing as raindrops--left as fast as they arrived but the bone-chilling weather was predicted to last at least through tonight, with temperatures dipping into the 20s in some areas. The rain, however, is a goner for now.

“It will get a bit colder before it gets warmer,” said Steve Burback, a meteorologist for WeatherData, Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times. “You won’t see any rain though.”

Even with wind blasts in 40-degree weather, people found the holiday spirit in strange and wondrous ways Friday--and they did it outdoors, no less.

Nearly 100 members of the Walrus Club took their annual plunge into brisk ocean waves warmer than the 45-degree air in Corona del Mar. A windsurfer was spotted riding the whitecaps at Lake Mission Viejo. And treasure hunter Mike Simonson had to himself a one-mile stretch of Prima Deshecha Canada Beach in San Clemente Friday afternoon.

Armed with a metal detector and dressed in a heavy blue jacket, jeans and hip-high rubber wading boots to ward off the damp wind, the unemployed Pearblossom resident had collected about $5 in change in four hours of beach wandering.

“This is the ideal time for treasure hunting,” Simonson said cheerfully. “The heavy waves churn up the sand and all of the money and jewelry comes to the top. And, there’s not as many people around to bother you. When low tide comes later, that’s when I should do really well.”

The heater went out at Joplin Boys Ranch Friday morning about the same time snowflakes began falling, and the 60 teen-agers at the juvenile detention facility bundled up in rooms no warmer than 45 to 50 degrees. But the morning Christmas concert and afternoon play were not disrupted, ranch officials said.

“It’s snowing as we speak,” Sheila Pierce, of the administration, said about 11:30 a.m. “It’s about 42 degrees and dropping and it didn’t even rain before it snowed. Since the heat’s out in all of our buildings it’s below 50 degrees inside. We’re just putting on lots of extra clothes and coats and sweaters and blowing in our hands and complaining--the usual,” she added with a laugh.

Speaking of the usual, firewood was selling like ice cream in July. Police reported some random problems with illegal fires lit in trash cans and on sidewalks by street people trying to keep warm. And homeless shelters reported needing donations of everything from bar soap to blankets and warm clothing to meet the demands of winter’s coldest storm.

Outside the Episcopal Service Agency in San Clemente, the homeless were gathering by 5 p.m. for a free dinner.

“You crawl into a place where there’s no wind, with a blanket, and just hope that the police don’t kick you out,” said a long-haired homeless man of about 30 named Keith. Wearing only a gray pull-over sweat shirt and jeans and missing a front tooth, Keith said he’s been on the street for a year. “But that’s the problem in this area. They always kick you out.”

With only a gray sweat suit and a green stocking cap to ward off the chill, a woman on crutches named Lois stood listening nearby. In her mid-40s and also on the street a year, she said, “Alls you can do is pray that it gets below 40, ‘cause then they open up the church and you can stay in the church.”

Throughout the Southland, light snow fell shortly after 8 a.m., leaving a soft patina on the ground briefly before melting near Huntington Beach.

The sight of the flakes blowing in the cold ocean wind spawned excitement and wonder among children, and even adult workers at the Huntington Beach Civic Center swapped snow stories.

“I was down at the Grinder (on Pacific Coast Highway) having breakfast this morning,” said Kai Weisser, 31, a marine safety officer, “and when I came out . . . there was snow on the ground. . . . I’ve lived here since I was 4 years old, and I couldn’t believe it. I’ve seen hail before, but never snow.”

The breakfast crowd at Ruby’s restaurant at the end of the Seal Beach Pier watched with delight as snowflakes spun by the windows, waitress Suzi Henricks said. Cold weather has curbed business some, she said.

Snow also dusted the foothill town of Glendora in the San Gabriel Valley and the coastline communities of Seal Beach, San Clemente, Rancho Palos Verdes and the San Pedro district of Los Angeles about 8 a.m. Friday. Snow showers were reported in Fountain Valley, Costa Mesa, Santa Ana and in higher-altitude areas such El Cariso Summit off the Ortega Highway.

Born by an upper-level storm system that has blown frigid air from Canada and the Arctic southward, the cold front delivered much heavier snowfall in mountains farther inland, forcing the California Highway Patrol to convoy traffic through the Gorman area on Interstate 5 for about four hours.

Forecasters said clearing skies today would probably bring even colder temperatures--clouds help maintain ground temperatures--with sub-freezing readings predicted for many communities this morning and Sunday morning.

Temperatures in the low 20s--cold enough to cause significant damage to citrus and avocado crops--were anticipated throughout the weekend in some of Southern California’s agricultural districts.

Forecasters said it will remain clear and get a little warmer--but not much--on Monday and on Christmas Day.

For the third night in a row, the county’s two National Guard armories, in Fullerton and Santa Ana, were opened to the homeless, providing hot meals and adding another 250 beds to the estimated 600 available through private and public shelters.

Diane Edwards, director of the Orange County Social Services Agency that oversees the armory shelter program, said the Fullerton facility was only half full Thursday night despite shuttle bus services provided from areas heavily populated by homeless, such as Hart Park in Orange and the county Civic Center in Santa Ana.

Donations of blankets and warm clothing have been helpful, although Edwards said personal-hygiene items such as soap, razors and toothbrushes are in demand.

It’s been nippy lately, agreed county historian Jim Sleeper, but it has been colder. The county’s record low temperature for Dec. 21 was 23 degrees, in Santa Ana, in 1969. A year and a day before that--Dec. 20, 1968--there was spotty snow like Friday, and it didn’t stick around long either.

The last recorded major snowfall in Orange County was on Jan. 11, 1949. Snow blanketed the central valley portion of the county and remained for two or three days, according to accounts Sleeper has read. “They were having snowball fights and building snowmen, (so) that’s pretty good snow.” There was also substantial crop damage.

However, growers said Friday they are hoping the cloud cover that kept ground temperatures warmer than air temperatures will persist through the cold spell.

“We had wind machines going and helicopters at certain points when it hit 28,” said Alan Reynolds, orchard manager for the 6,000-acre Treasure Farms, the county’s largest farming concern. “That cold held only for brief spells, and we’re hoping that happens again or we could have some damage.”

Times staff writers Eric Malnic and Bill Billiter and correspondents Terry Spencer, Wendy Paulson, Len Hall and Jon Nalick contributed to this report.

WINTER ARRIVES WITH A FLURRY

Temperatures fell into the 30s Friday morning in much of the county, with some areas reporting traces of snow. The cold snap is expected to continue through the weekend. Sources: National Weather Service, WeatherData and Times reports