Heat warnings and advisories have been issued for parts of the Bay Area as several cities reach the best temperatures ever recorded.
Alexis Clouser, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said a high pressure system is moving across the region, causing very high temperatures. A heat warning has been issued for inland cities through Tuesday. A heat warning has also been issued for coastal cities around San Francisco Bay through Tuesday, however the warning in San Francisco is about to finish on Thursday.
According to Clouser, temperatures in several Bay Area cities are expected to achieve or exceed record highs. In San Rafael, temperatures are expected to achieve 100 degrees, which might beat the record high of 99 degrees set in 2001. In Oakland, temperatures are expected to achieve 92 degrees, only one degree cooler than the record high of 93 degrees set in 2001. In Livermore, temperatures could reach 108 degrees, slightly below the previous record high of 109 degrees set in 2001.
Highs of 98 degrees are expected in San Jose, and highs of a balmy 83 degrees are expected in downtown San Francisco. Lows Wednesday night are expected to drop to the 60s to 70s inland.
Clouser advised people without air-con to chill off at cooling centers. The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority said it is going to offer free rides on buses and lightweight rail to certain cooling centers within the county through Sunday, July 7.
The Bay Area Air Quality Management District has also issued an unhealthy air quality warning for the Santa Clara Valley and East Bay. The cause is increased ozone levels, or smog, which might result in respiratory irritation, reduced lung function, asthma exacerbation, and inflammation and damage to the liner of the lungs. The air quality may be especially unhealthy for sensitive groups, including children, the elderly, pregnant women, and other people with underlying medical conditions equivalent to diabetes, heart disease, and lung disease.
On Tuesday, six recent wildfires broke out in Northern California and the Central Coast and were still raging on Wednesday morning.
The largest fire amongst them is the Thompson Fire, which threatens 12,000 structures in Butte County. It has burned 3,000 acres of land just outside Oroville and was 0% contained as of Wednesday morning.
Cal Fire-Butte County spokesman Rick Carhart told the Chico Enterprise-Record that 28,000 people needed to be evacuated and that initial reports indicated 4 buildings had burned. He said greater than 1,400 firefighters were working to contain the blaze and that 4 of them had suffered minor injuries.
The Airline Fire in San Benito County has burned roughly 450 acres and is 55% contained. There has been one confirmed injury related to the hearth.
As of Wednesday morning, the Moccasin Fire in El Dorado County has burned 21 acres and is 25% contained. Cal Fire said evacuation orders and warnings remain in effect as crews proceed to fight the hearth.
The Toll Fire in Napa County also burned about 20 acres and was 20% contained as of Wednesday morning. According to the most recent update from Cal Fire, firefighters were on the scene last night to “build and reinforce control lines and clean up.”
According to Cal Fire, the Denverton Fire was 0% contained as of Wednesday morning. The fire burned 25 acres in Solano County along Creek Road and Denverton Road.
In Shasta County, the Yolla Fire has now grown to 19 acres and is 35% contained. The fire is positioned off Cottonwood Creek Road.
“Firefighters are making good progress despite the steep and rugged terrain,” Cal Fire said on its fire incident page.
Pacific Gas & Electric also announced several safety-related power outages in Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Lake, Napa, Shasta, Solano, Sonoma, Tehama and Yolo counties as a result of high winds and dry conditions. No more power outages are expected for the remaining of the week after Wednesday.
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