Heat Wave Proves Unwavering : Weather: Anaheim tops out at 97 degrees. Thousands seek relief at the beach, where the surf hits a comfortable 78 in some spots. Relief may arrive Tuesday.

An uncomfortable combination of record-breaking heat and high humidity sent thousands scrambling to Orange County beaches Saturday, where the ocean was a remarkably warm 75 degrees.

Lifeguards said beach-goers spent much of their time swimming, surfing or splashing around.

“That’s just about as warm as the water gets so we had big crowds today,” said Newport Beach lifeguard Mike Halphine, whose beach played host to a crowd of about 95,000 people. “It’s been so hot on the beach that you can’t stay on the sand for too long without having to take a dip in the water.”

The county’s hot spots included Santa Ana, which reached a record-breaking 94 degrees--two degrees higher than the same day in 1958.

Anaheim was sweltering even more at 97 degrees, and El Toro wasn’t far behind at 95 degrees. San Juan Capistrano matched Santa Ana’s high of 94 degrees.

Even though it’s summer these are “unusually high temperatures for this time of year,” said Steve Burback, a meteorologist with WeatherData Inc., which tracks forecasts for The Times. “It’s at least five to 10 degrees above normal.”

With more beach-goers in the water than usual, lifeguards performed more rescues. Although the surf at most of the beaches was only one to two feet high, there were perilous rip currents.

“We had a dramatic number of rescues in the afternoon,” said San Clemente Marine Safety Lt. Bill Humphreys. “Considering that the surf was not very high, 55 rescues is a lot. But with the water so extremely warm and so many people trying to cool off, it’s not surprising.”

In addition to the hot air and warm water, a men’s professional volleyball tournament swelled Seal Beach crowds to more than 15,000, lifeguard Mark Lees said.

“The parking lots have been completely filled,” said Lees. “People have had to take shuttle buses to the beach.”

Parking was also scarce at Huntington city and state beaches, which together drew more than 100,000 beach-goers throughout the day. Busy lifeguards there performed more than 100 rescues.

Lifeguards are bracing themselves for more of the same today as the perfect beach weather is expected to continue with temperatures only slightly dropping by a couple of degrees.

But there should be some relief in sight.

“After Sunday, a cooling trend will begin and continue through the rest of the week,” Burback said. “Temperatures should stabilize and be back down to the 70s and 80s by as early as Tuesday.”