THOUSAND OAKS : Heat Linked to Death of Man Riding Bike

The continuing high temperatures this weekend may have contributed to the death of a 51-year-old Thousand Oaks man, who died Saturday morning while bicycling at Point Mugu State Park, authorities said.

Park officials said they suspect that Kenneth Bonebrite died of a heart attack brought on by the extreme heat. Pending an autopsy, however, no cause of death was given by the Ventura County coroner’s office.

Bonebrite was riding fairly slowly down a steep hill near Sycamore Canyon about 10:45 a.m. when he went off the road and crashed into some brush, park ranger Simon Cavazos said. Bystanders rushed to help Bonebrite, who appeared to be having a heart attack, Cavazos said.

“When one of our rangers arrived, he was already in full cardiac arrest, but people were administering (cardiopulmonary resuscitation),” Cavazos said. “We don’t know, but the heat appears to have been a factor.”

Temperatures at Point Mugu were hovering around 95 degrees when Bonebrite collapsed, Cavazos said.

Bonebrite was taken by sheriff’s helicopter to Los Robles Regional Medical Center in Thousand Oaks, where he was pronounced dead, Cavazos said.

Warm weather prevailed across the county Saturday, but temperatures were slightly lower than on Friday, meteorologists said.

Temperatures reached a high of 100 degrees in Fillmore and Piru, and the mercury peaked at 99 in Simi Valley and 97 in Ojai, the county Air Pollution Control District reported. Temperatures on the coast stayed around 80.

The hot temperatures are expected to continue today as a high pressure system over Arizona stifles cooling onshore breezes, said Curtis Brack, a meteorologist from WeatherData Inc., which forecasts for The Times.

“There’s really no relief in sight from these highs,” he said.

The county pollution control district predicted moderate to unhealthy air pollution conditions today.