The Heat Is On : Southland the Warmest Spot in Nation 3 Days in a Row

With an unseasonably high temperature of 96 degrees Tuesday, Van Nuys tied with Palm Springs as the hottest spot in the nation, giving Los Angeles County the dubious honor of producing the country’s highest temperatures for three straight days.

The Van Nuys temperature broke the city’s all-time high record of 94 degrees for the month of November.

On Monday, Glendale and San Gabriel were the nation’s hot spots, with temperatures of 92 degrees. On Sunday, Glendale garnered the distinction all for itself, with a temperature of 91 degrees.

Weather forecasters attributed the warm weather to a high pressure system over the West Coast that has kept cooling clouds offshore.

In downtown Los Angeles, the high was 88 degrees, falling far short of the record 94 set on that date in 1898, said Stephanie Hunter, a meteorologist for WeatherData Inc., a private firm that provides weather information for The Times. The low was 61 degrees. Humidity was at 16%, which Hunter said was extremely dry for November.

The temperature in Glendale rose to a high of 92 degrees; the low was 55. In Van Nuys, the temperatures overnight also dropped to 55. The temperatures in Pasadena hit a high of 92 and a low of 58. In Long Beach, the high was 88 and the low was 54 degrees.

Doctors said that some patients believe the seesawing temperatures contribute to colds, but there is no medical support for that.

“Since the beginning of time, people have tried to tie drastic temperature changes with the outbreak of colds, but there’s no scientific evidence to back that up,” said Dr. Eric Daar, a virologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Colds at this time of year are more likely linked to the classroom exchange of viruses that accompanies the return to school, he said.

The summery weather was in sharp contrast to the wintry cold that has descended upon the Midwest and the Central Plains states. While Southern Californians were putting down the convertible tops and slipping into bathing suits, as much as one foot of snow fell on the Northern Rockies while Nebraska and the Central Plains states saw light snow fall. The coldest temperature in the nation--excluding Hawaii and Alaska--was minus 4 degrees in Alamosa, Colo.

And while the rest of the nation shivered in the cold, sales for ice and ice cream vendors in Southern California heated up slightly.

Bob Benedetto, general manager of North Hollywood Ice Co., said ice sales usually chill out by November. But because of the recent three-day heat wave, business has warmed up to about 20% above normal.

“Our season is over,” Benedetto said. “We are just getting a little tail wind with this hot weather.”