March heat shatters records in bone-dry Los Angeles

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A paddle boarder beats the heat at Doheny State Beach. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

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Angela Robles, 3, enjoys a water shooting fountain at Victoria Gardens on a hot afternoon in Rancho Cucamonga. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

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A paddle boarder glides across the calm waters of Dana Point Harbor during second day of the heat wave. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

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The sun rises on commuters in the San Fernando Valley on Friday morning. Hot temperatures are predicted again for the Southland. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Abe Quirarte tosses his son, Abe Jr., 8, of San Gabriel, as they cool off at Lake Perris in Riverside County amid high temperatures Thursday. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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A pair of paddle boaters pause in the cool mist of the fountain in Echo Park Lake as the temperature climbs into the 90s on Thursday afternoon. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

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Children play in the cool waters of Lake Perris amid high temperatures Thursday. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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A surfer stays cool at the Wedge in Newport Beach. The surf on south-facing beaches is expected to get larger late Friday through the weekend. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

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As temperatures soar into the 90s Thursday, Chevette Veney, 21, center, jumps through a splash over the breakwater at Venice Beach. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

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Laquisia Johnson, 21, gives her boyfriend David Flowers, 21, a kiss while the pair cool off at Venice Beach. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

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As a heat wave hits Southern California, students work out during an exercise class in Lanark Park. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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The sun. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

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With temperatures soaring into the 90’s inland, people flocked to Corona del Mar State Beach to beat the heat. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

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A couple walks along the Santa Fe Dam. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

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Commuters in Los Alamitos head east into the rising sun on Thursday. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

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A plane lands at Los Angeles International Airport on Wednesday evening. (Luis SInco / Los Angeles Times)

By Veronica Rocha

March 28, 2015 7:42 AM PT

A series of heat waves this month -- including a brief one one that ended Friday -- brought a grim new distinction to hot, dry Los Angeles.

This is the first March since record-keeping began in 1877 that has had six days with highs in the 90s or above in Los Angeles. That shattered the record set in 1977, when there were three days of highs in the 90s.

Overall, temperatures are warmer, and the trend is expected to continue for the next three months.

“This type of weather is very unusual,” said Stuart Seto, a weather specialist for the National Weather Service in Oxnard.

Almost every day this year temperatures have been on average 10 degrees above normal in California, while there has been little precipitation, Seto said.

“We are not only getting warmer, but we are also losing water,” he said.

Downtown Los Angeles on Friday tied a record for the day, hitting 91 degrees.

A high-pressure system coupled with weak offshore flows caused temperatures to increase throughout the Southland.

Saturday will be much cooler after clouds and fog overnight, and temperatures will return to normal by Sunday. Next week will also be warm with temperatures seven or eight degrees above normal.

Dry conditions have worsened in California, and m ountain snowpacks have shrunk over the last few weeks, according to the latest U.S. drought report.

Rainfall fell short of supplying any significant moisture to relieve the drought, according to meteorologist Eric Luebehusen of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

For breaking news in California, follow @VeronicaRochaLA on Twitter.

March heat shatters records in bone-dry Los Angeles

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