Sultry August Goes Out Like a Dragon, With Fire in the Hills

The weekend heat wave continued Monday, closing out one of the hottest Augusts on record.

As temperatures stayed well above normal, reaching triple digits in some cities, residents dealt with electrical blackouts and authorities coped with brush fires.

About 100 firefighters battled a 30-acre blaze in the Cleveland National Forest that scorched the earth and sent acrid smoke across south Orange County through the afternoon and evening.

“It was horrendous,” said Steve Hallgren, a firefighter with the state forestry service. “You should have seen the smoke and flames.”

Two firefighters were treated for heat exhaustion.

“It was very warm out there,” said Kymbra Fleming, a spokeswoman for the Orange County Fire Authority. “We have commanders monitoring their condition so that we don’t overwork these firefighters. We have a canteen set up to keep them hydrated.”

The agency sent the first crews to battle the canyon blaze about 12:30 p.m. Authorities said several crews of county firefighters and jail inmates were expected to work through the night digging a fire line to confine the blaze and keep it from spreading beyond the steep, rocky terrain near Holy Jim Canyon. Arson investigators also were at the scene to determine the cause of the fire.

No structures were damaged, and fire authorities said they hoped to extinguish the blaze by tonight.

Officials warned that weather trends suggested the risk of fires will continue to climb in the weeks ahead.

“We’re really only seeing the beginning of the true fire season,” said Steve Markkanen, a senior forecaster with the National Weather Service. “There’s a lot more plant growth than usual because of El Nino rains, which lasted until well into the spring, and all that brush and grass are now at the point where they’re getting extremely dry.”

Temperatures lingered near 100 degrees for a fourth day. Orange County’s highs were in Santa Ana and Irvine, both of which recorded 100 degrees, said meteorologist Jeff House of WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts to The Times.

The highs were slightly lower in the coastal cities of Laguna Beach and Newport Beach, which recorded highs of 93 and 90, respectively.

The heat wave is being caused by a high-pressure system centered off the California coast, House said.

Temperatures should continue falling slightly each day through the week, he said.

“It will stay pretty warm,” House said, “but not as bad as the weekend was. The temperature should drop a couple of degrees each day until, by this weekend, you will be back to around normal readings.”

Scattered storms--some at higher elevations, a few accompanied by lightning--brought cooler temperatures and a smattering of rain to portions of the county. There is a 20% chance that more rain will fall today, House said.

To escape the heat, residents by the thousands flocked to shopping centers and their air-conditioned corridors. Thousands more stayed home but cranked up their air conditioners--and that caused problems for Southern California Edison. The utility reported that about 2,100 residents in several areas of the county lost electrical service briefly due to the increased demand for power.

“We’re considering this the equivalent of a severe storm,” said Steven Hansen, a spokesman for the company, which had repair crews--including some brought in from Sacramento and San Francisco--working around the clock.

His advice to residents caught in the heat: “Turn the thermostat up to 78 degrees and use a fan.”

Even that, however, proved to be a problem for some heat-stricken residents. Stores countywide reported runs on fans. A Target store in Santa Ana received a shipment of them Monday morning but was sold out by noon. “We always sell them fast,” a spokeswoman said, “but it’s unusual to sell them this fast.”

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Times correspondent Chris Ceballos and wire services contributed to this report.

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Make Up Your Mind, Mother Nature

First it’s hot, then it’s raining. How can it be baking and pouring at the same time? A look at our weird weather.

High-pressure dome blocks cool Pacific breezes

Desert heat moves in, bakes Southern California

Thunderstorm heads southeast along Nevada-California border

Sources: Mark Moede, National Weather Service; The Weather Channel

Graphics reporting by BRADY MacDONALD / Los Angeles Times