Labor Day Crowds Hit the Malls and Beaches

Orange County residents marked the unofficial end to summer Monday lounging at the beach and snatching up department store bargains on Labor Day.

Many people opted for the air-conditioned environs of malls, where retailers unloaded their summer inventory and offered back-to-school and fall merchandise.

“It’s been like a Christmas holiday crowd,” said Linda Cyphers, a concierge for South Coast Plaza. “There’s been a very good crowd. People are going after all the sales.”

Holiday traffic was typically heavy, but no fatal accidents were reported.

Shortly before noon, two southbound exits of the Santa Ana Freeway were closed briefly after a freight train touched off a grass fire along the Southern Pacific railroad tracks, authorities said.

The train apparently ignited a clump of vegetation near Manchester Avenue and Beach Boulevard at 11:39 a.m., Anaheim fire officials said.

The fire, which spread south along the tracks about two miles to Euclid Street, was extinguished within the hour.

The Beach Boulevard and Magnolia Avenue exits were reopened by 1 p.m.

Along the coast, tens of thousands of beach-goers barbecued, soaked up the sunny weather and splashed in the warm, 70-degree surf.

Lifeguards were busy with rescues, but no major injuries were reported.

“We’ve been packed all day, but it’s been a real quiet crowd,” said Sean Steimly, a lifeguard at Bolsa Chica State Beach. “It’s been a really nice day.”

Huntington Beach Lifeguard Lt. Mike Beuerlein said more than 90,000 people flocked to the beach there.

“It’s been extra busy,” he said, “probably our busiest weekend this summer.”

The warm weather is expected to continue throughout the week. Curtis Brack, a meteorologist for WeatherData Inc., said temperatures in Orange County will hover in the low 80s inland and the upper 60s along the coast.

Also contributing to this report was Times staff writer Renee Tawa.