Santa Rosa registered its hottest day of the year Friday as a heat wave gripping the West settled in, the beginning of a warm-up that is expected to keep the mercury soaring the next few days.
The full-on summer blast prompted officials to issue an excessive-heat warning in the San Francisco Bay Area, where temperatures were expected to top out over 100 in some areas, persisting through Tuesday evening.
In the North Bay, the hot spots Friday were Cloverdale and Calistoga, which tied at 104 degrees. Santa Rosa's 98 degrees Friday did not reach the 103-degree record for the date, set in 1976.
Santa Rosa's high temperatures are expected to hover near 100 degrees over the next few days.
The National Weather Service warned of a heightened risk of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. And the Sonoma County Department of Health Services said infants and children up to 4 years of age are especially vulnerable, along with seniors over 65.
A Spare the Air Alert also was issued for today by air pollution regulators, indicating unhealthy air quality and a request for people to drive less.
The scorching temperatures across the state and parts of the West were blamed on a high-pressure system brought on by a shift in the jet stream, which has been more erratic in the past few years.
The hot spot in California on Friday was Death Valley at 125 degrees. It was predicted to hit 128 degrees there today, but still shy of the all-time world record of 134 degrees reached a century ago.
The heat wave comes at the close of the second driest six-month period on record, and just ahead of the Fourth of July fireworks celebrations, elevating concerns about drought and fire danger.
From January to June, 6.71 inches of rain fell in Santa Rosa, second only to the 6.57 inches that fell in the same period in 1976.
The drought-like conditions across California have kept firefighters much busier than usual this year.
"We're about four to eight weeks ahead of our normal fire schedule conditions," said Cal Fire Capt. Amy Head, explaining that fuel moisture levels and fire activity resemble what is typically seen later in the summer.
Through June 23, Cal Fire handled 2,900 fires that burned 52,395 acres, compared with 1,950 fires and 17,594 acres for the same period last year.
The prolonged period of excessively warm to hot weather could produce record-breaking temperatures in Oakland, Richmond and Mountain View, according to Steve Anderson, a U.S. Weather meteorologist.
Friday produced capacity crowds at swimming pools, and waiting lines to get in.
Santa Rosa's two public swimming pools were both full by mid-afternoon Friday.
Some looking for respite from the heat had to wait for others to leave the pool at the Finley Aquatic Center.
"No bodies in, until bodies come out," an employee announced to about two dozen people in the lobby awaiting their turn to enter the 450-person capacity pool.
The city's Ridgway swim center also was full.
Cold drinks were de rigueur at coffee shops.
"The ice maker is working overtime," said Trevor Moore, barista at Holy Roast Cafe in downtown Santa Rosa.
By mid-afternoon Friday, the shop had gone through a whole 2-gallon jug of ice coffee, he said, "about twice as much as normal."
In Rincon Valley, outside the 7-Eleven store on Middle Rincon Road, landscaper Troy Hug sat in the shade on a break between jobs Friday afternoon, while his co-worker went inside for an ice cream cone.
"We try to take it easy. It kind of sucks," he said of the heat. "The first hot day is kind of hard to adjust. After that you get used to it."
"We wear sombreros, too," he added.
In the St. Francis Acres neighborhood Friday afternoon, a dozen or so roofers swarmed the top of a house on Yerba Buena Road.
Some of the workers wet their undershirts to offset the blazing sun, but, "I'd rather go home and jump in the pool," said Richard Callahan, a contractor with Harborth Construction.
It takes a lot of fluids to keep hydrated - water and Gatorade - said one man who only gave his first name, Jeff.
"You have to pace yourself," he said, his shirt drenched in sweat. "It's hard."
News Researcher Janet Balicki contributed to this story. You can reach Staff Writer Clark Mason at 521-5214 or clark.mason@pressdemocrat.com.
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