Record Heat Scorches Bay Area; Some Shed Garb to Protest Anti-Nudity Law
As an unusual midsummer heat wave peeled away temperature records Saturday, some residents in Berkeley responded by peeling off their clothes to make a political point.
A high pressure system hanging over the West dragged hot air from inland valleys into the Bay Area. Downtown San Francisco reached 98 degrees at 2 p.m., shattering the record of 83 set in 1987, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Teri Egger.
“I could go for a few degrees lower,” Egger said.
A few miles away in Berkeley, half a dozen nudists took advantage of the weather to shed their clothes and plan a referendum against an ordinance banning nudity in public places.
Members of the Committee to Preserve Civil Liberties told passersby that for some people, nudity is more than a way to stay cool--it’s a lifestyle.
Elsewhere at 2 p.m., Moffett Naval Air Station near Menlo Park registered 97 degrees, a record for the date.
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