'Mini heatwave' bringing record-high temperatures across Southern California, concerns for Coachella
Temperatures across Southern California continued to inch up Wednesday, part of a warming trend that forecasters say is expected to bring triple-digit heat to the Coachella music festival this weekend.
Meteorologists say highs this week could set a few daily records, especially Thursday and Friday across the inland deserts, marking some of the hottest days at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in recent years.
The desert's mega-popular music festival will kickoff at the "tail-end of our mini heatwave," forecasters from the weather service warned on X, reminding attendees to stay hydrated.
Read more: The Go-Go's are back again, still real, raw and ready for Coachella and Cruel World
'We could break records tomorrow and Friday for Palm Springs, and maybe some areas in the Coachella Valley," Sebastian Westerink, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in San Diego, said Wednesday. Highs in the area are forecast to hit 102 or 103 degrees, before cooling off slightly Saturday — but still likely to reach into the high 90s.
The current temperature record in Palm Springs for April 10 and 11 is 101 degrees, Westerink said.
The festival hasn't yet made public any specific precautions for the weather forecast, but in its Frequently Asked Questions, organizers said there will be plenty of shaded structures and there may be mist tents, which have been available at prior festivals. They also encouraged people to bring empty, non-metal water bottles that can be refilled for free at water stations.
On social media, people have been preparing for the heat at Coachella, sharing tips for how to stay cool, especially when camping. One regular Coachella attendee recommended campers bring a fan that they can use with a spray bottle, while another said it's key to stay hydrated and seek out some of the venue's air conditioned areas, including the Yuma Tent.
'The temperatures, at least for the inland areas, are going to be 10 to 20 [degrees] above average," Westerink said. "For the Palm Springs area, ... it's fairly hot."
Highs across inland Southern California will peak Thursday and Friday, and at least one other daily record could be tested, according to Devin Black, a meteorologist with the weather service in Oxnard. Woodland Hills' current record high on April 10 was set in 1988 at 94 degrees — which is also the forecasted high on Thursday.
Other inland valleys across Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties, as well as the Inland Empire, can expect highs in the low 90s Thursday and Friday, before a slight cooldown begins Saturday.
This weather appears to be part of a monthlong trend, with long-term forecasts showing warm, dry weather likely to stick around for the next few weeks in Southern California.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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