Manhattan Beach Celebrates Opening of Its Renovated Pier

The Huntington Beach pier wasn’t the only newcomer welcomed to the Southern California coastline Saturday.

Thirty miles north, lured by cooling coastal breezes, beach-goers listened to barbershop quartets during ribbon-cutting ceremonies for the newly renovated Manhattan Beach Pier. The 92-year-old landmark was nearly demolished by storms and politicians thought it was too expensive to restore. But on Saturday, those behind the six-year effort to raise $3.8 million in funding were celebrating.

The high in downtown Los Angeles reached 91 degrees and the humidity hit 53% late in the morning. In the San Fernando Valley and in desert locations, thermometer readings broke the 100-degree mark--108 in Van Nuys, 102 in Northridge, 105 in San Bernardino and114 in Palm Springs.

About 70 people were treated for heat exhaustion at an air show at the Van Nuys Airport, authorities said.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District called first-stage smog alerts after its Pollutants Standard Index reached the 200 level in the San Bernardino Valley, metropolitan Riverside, the east San Gabriel Valley and central Orange County. Health advisories were also in effect in the Pomona-Walnut Valley and central San Bernardino Mountains.

In La Habra, about 200 Southern California Edison customers were unable to use their air conditioners for much of the day after a dump-truck accident knocked out power to the area.

Even away from the beaches, Southern Californians found ways to catch rays.

In Topanga Canyon, about 300 nudists showed up at an eight-acre Elysium Fields nudist camp to work on tans without lines and do some good for victims of the riots.

Camp officials urged visitors to donate clothes to a Brotherhood Crusade effort to help needy families who lost possessions during the riots. A sign in front of the Santa Monica Mountain retreat read: “Leave Your Drawers Here.”