THE WEATHER BEAT · OCT 2
Southern California's heat watch becomes a warning: seven days of heat from Santa Barbara to San Diego, starting today
The Oxnard and San Diego offices upgraded Wednesday's watch to an Extreme Heat Warning, 10 a.m. today to 8 p.m. next Thursday, with valley highs up to 105.
Key points
- Overnight and early this morning, the National Weather Service offices in San Diego and Los Angeles/Oxnard turned Wednesday's Extreme Heat Watch into an Extreme Heat Warning. It covers the coast and valleys from Santa Barbara County to the Mexican border, from 10 a.m. PDT today to 8 p.m. PDT Thursday, 8 October.
- The warnings forecast highs up to 105 in the valleys and 85 to 90 at the coast, with some mesas and higher coastal terrain near 100. The San Diego office expects nights mostly in the 70s.
- San Diego also has a Wind Advisory for Saturday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. PDT. It forecasts east winds with gusts up to 50 mph in the San Diego County valleys. The Oxnard office says the heat may run past the warning's end.
Today, officially: the watch became a warning
On Wednesday this desk wrote about the Extreme Heat Watch for Southern California. The watch gave two days' notice, and a watch either becomes a warning or gets cancelled. This one became a warning. San Diego issued its warning at 12:32 a.m. PDT and Los Angeles/Oxnard at 5:38 a.m. PDT. Both start at 10 this morning and run to 8 p.m. PDT next Thursday. That is seven days, across the coast and valleys where most of Southern California lives.
The numbers moved a little between the watch and the warning. The San Diego watch forecast valley highs up to 108 and ended on Wednesday the 7th. The warning says upper 90s to 105 and runs a day longer, to Thursday the 8th. The Oxnard numbers are the same as on Wednesday: up to 90 at the coast and 105 in the valleys of Los Angeles and Ventura counties. In Santa Barbara County it is up to 85 at the coast and 100 in the mountains and the Cuyama Valley. Oxnard's morning discussion gives more detail: Downtown Los Angeles 99 to 103, the warmer valleys 102 to 107, and the coast from Santa Barbara to Los Angeles 90 to 98. The office calls that "15-20 degrees above normal."
The office also explains why the beaches are in this one. High pressure is building over the eastern Pacific and the West Coast, and the air is drifting offshore instead of coming in off the water. Oxnard says plainly that "it's not a traditional Santa Ana," because the winds aloft are not strong enough for steady gusts. Even so, "in typical Santa Ana fashion, this heat wave will include the beaches, at least south of Pt Conception." With almost no sea breeze, the coast loses its usual protection.
San Diego's area does get the wind. Its discussion expects Santa Ana gusts of 30 to 40 mph today. On Saturday it expects 35 to 45 mph, with isolated gusts to 55 mph over the San Diego County mountains and inland valleys. A Wind Advisory covers Saturday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. PDT. The nights are the other part of this forecast. San Diego expects lows mostly in the 70s on the coast and in the valleys from Saturday through Tuesday. A night that stays in the 70s gives the body little chance to recover before the next hot afternoon.
Neither office treats Thursday as a firm end date. Both Oxnard warning products say the heat is "likely to continue into the second week of October, possibly requiring an extension of this product." Oxnard's discussion adds that "some model solutions" point to even hotter temperatures around Wednesday into Friday, "leading to breaking daily high temperature records." That is the office's forecast. No records have been set yet. San Diego's discussion says "gradual cooling could develop around Friday of next week."
The products' advice is the same as on Wednesday. Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check on relatives and neighbors. San Diego's warning adds the line about parked cars: "Car interiors will reach lethal temperatures in a matter of minutes."
| Warning area | Office | Forecast, per the product | Window |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles and Ventura coast and valleys, incl. Downtown LA, San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys, Santa Clarita, Ojai, Malibu, Catalina | NWS Los Angeles/Oxnard | up to 90 at the coast, 105 in the valleys | 10 a.m. PDT Fri 2 Oct to 8 p.m. PDT Thu 8 Oct |
| Santa Barbara County coasts, Santa Ynez Mountains, interior mountains, Cuyama Valley, Santa Cruz and Anacapa Islands | NWS Los Angeles/Oxnard | up to 85 at the coast, 100 in the mountains and Cuyama Valley | same |
| Orange County coastal | NWS San Diego | mid 80s to around 90 near the coast, mid 90s to around 100 on higher coastal terrain; lows mostly in the 70s | same |
| San Diego County coastal | NWS San Diego | mid 80s to lower 90s near the coast, mid 90s to around 102 on the mesas; lows mostly in the 70s | same |
| Orange County inland | NWS San Diego | mid 90s to 102; lows in the 70s | same |
| San Diego County valleys; the Inland Empire | NWS San Diego | upper 90s to 105; lows lower to mid 70s | same |
| Santa Ana Mountains and foothills | NWS San Diego | up to 98 | same |
| Wind Advisory: San Diego County valleys / Inland Empire / Orange County inland and Santa Ana Mountains | NWS San Diego | east winds, gusts up to 50 / 45 / 40 mph | 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. PDT Sat 3 Oct |
*Sources: NWS Los Angeles/Oxnard CA Extreme Heat Warning, sent 5:38 a.m. PDT 2 October 2026; NWS San Diego CA Extreme Heat Warning with Wind Advisory, sent 12:32 a.m. PDT 2 October 2026; both read from api.weather.gov at 13:5xZ. Area Forecast Discussions: Los Angeles/Oxnard, 6:25 a.m. PDT, and San Diego, 2:40 a.m. PDT, 2 October 2026. The watch figures are from the house's 30 September explainer, which read the watches as issued. Times are Pacific Daylight Time.*
This is a morning summary, not emergency information. For live warnings see weather.gov and your local officials. The Los Angeles/Oxnard office posts its products at https://www.weather.gov/lox/ and the San Diego office at https://www.weather.gov/sgx/.
The rock's live forecast for the places in this story
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