Heat Stays Put but No Records Are Fried

It was another broiling day in Southern California on Thursday, with temperatures of more than 100 degrees in numerous cities, but few records were set.

The high in downtown Los Angeles was 101, two degrees below the record for the day. It reached 102 in Burbank, five degrees below the record, and 100 in Riverside, 12 degrees below the record.

The temperatures should drop slightly today and Saturday, but it still will be extremely hot, said Kevin Stenson, a meteorologist for WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times.

“Even though the temperatures will be a bit lower, it will still feel quite hot because of the high humidity,” Stenson said.

During the rest of the Labor Day weekend, and the following week, the temperatures will remain a few degrees above normal, Stenson said.

“The continued hot weather has been caused by a ridge of high pressure that just hasn’t budged,” Stenson said. “This is a pretty normal seasonal pattern. What’s different is that ridge of high pressure is stronger than normal.”

The hot weather continued to torment Orange County firefighters, who hope to extinguish a blaze in Santiago Canyon by this morning. Left behind are nearly 8,800 blackened acres and a neighborhood of relieved homeowners.

“We are in the mop-up stage,” said Capt. Scott Brown, a spokesman for the Orange County Fire Authority. “It is very important to make sure that everything is cold. As evidenced by the winds this week, it doesn’t take much to fan an errant ember and restart a fire.”

About 1,200 firefighters remained in the area Thursday and had the blaze 70% contained, Brown said. About half of them were expected to work through the night.

Relief and gratitude to firefighters was widespread among residents of the Foothill Ranch community, who had spent several anxious days and nights as flames came within 50 feet of homes.

“These are the heroes,” resident Beth Clayton said. “They are incredible human beings, especially to work in this heat.”

Now, she said, “we’re just trying to get our lives back together after things being in such a state of upheaval.”

Several other fires in Orange and Riverside counties this week have already been extinguished. The most destructive of the fires was in Juniper Flats in Riverside County, which destroyed 39 homes and 35 other structures.

Orange County fire officials said the county’s strict building regulations helped prevent the loss of homes.

The developer of Foothill Ranch was required to create a 170-foot buffer zone between the mountains and houses, including a 50-foot strip of fire-resistant plants. Homes nearest the wilderness are made of nonflammable material and have double-paned windows. Any fences, patio coverings or gazebos must be made of material other than wood.

Although the county developed these guidelines in 1977, it wasn’t until fire destroyed more than 300 homes in Laguna Beach in 1993 that the regulations were adopted into the building and fire code and required of all new developments in high-risk areas.

As a result, Brown said, “No homes were burned and that’s the bottom line. It was terrible that we lost almost 9,000 acres, but we were successful in saving that community, which should serve as a model for any community in a fire-prone area.”

The fire, which was started by lightning Monday, appeared to be under control Wednesday when a sudden storm carrying 50-mph winds gave it new life. Embers jumped the Foothill Transportation Corridor and ignited small spot fires. At the same time, Marines at the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station, which the Foothill intersects, started a backfire to clear brush in the fire’s path.

The toll road and all other streets that had been closed because of the fire were reopened Thursday.

Meanwhile, environmental experts said that although the fire destroyed habitats, it was part of the natural process.

“Wild animals have adapted over time to wildfires,” said John Bradley, a wildlife biologist for the U.S. Department of Fish and Game. “In the long run, that’s the way things happen in this particular biological environment. Things inevitably burn. Typically, burned areas do recover and animals and plants go back to those areas.”

Times correspondent Jason Kandel contributed to this story.