RIVERSIDE (CNS) - Temperatures will soar into the triple digits today (Friday)
throughout the Inland Empire, and residents were advised to take precautions to
prevent heat stroke and other problems.
``Take this heat seriously, even if you're healthy and feel you are
acclimated to high temperatures,'' Riverside County Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron
Kaiser said. ``Temperatures like those predicted can lead to life-threatening
issues. Just a few precautions can help you stay safe.''
According to the National Weather Service, a stationary ridge of high
pressure will dominate Southern California, pushing the mercury above 100
degrees in the Riverside/San Bernardino/Ontario metropolitan area, with the thermometer climbing toward 120 in the eastern Coachella Valley.
The NWS issued a heat advisory from 10 a.m. Friday to 8 p.m. Monday,
noting that ``periods of hot temperatures ... will create a situation in which
heat illnesses are possible.''
``Drink plenty of fluids, stay in air-conditioned rooms, stay out of
the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors,'' according to an agency
statement.
Cooling centers will be open daily during the heat wave, providing
county residents who do not live in climate-controlled environments a free cool
space to relax until the evening hours.
A complete list of cooling centers is available here:
https://www.capriverside.org/Portals/0/PDF/Cool/2019_Cool_Center_Directory_7_10 _2019.pdf.
According to meteorologists, the broiling air mass will keep highs in
the low 100s around Riverside, Perris, Murrieta and surrounding locations until
Tuesday. The mercury will approach 120 in Indio, Thermal and parts farther east
over the same period, the NWS said.
The upper level ridge will weaken by the middle of next week, with
seasonable temps gradually returning, according to the Weather Service.