A month before summer’s official start, heat wave hits the West

Jennifer Coleman

Tuesday, May 23, 2000 | 3:41 a.m.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Record-breaking temperatures in the 90s and 100s across California have melted Sierra ski runs, closed sidewalk cafes and brought pleas for energy conservation.

The mercury is rising elsewhere in the West, too. Arizona and Nevada are already seeing mid-summer heat in May.

"I'm hot, muggy, sweaty. The sun's beating me up," said Danny Drum, a worker with Crisci Custom Builder in Las Vegas, pushing a wheel barrow around a construction site.

It was expected to reach 106 Tuesday in Las Vegas, which would tie the record for the date. The last time it was that hot was in 1984.

"It has been much warmer than normal, that's for sure," said Ed O'Lenic, a National Weather Service meteorologist. "Virtually for the entire country, we're calling for higher temperatures."

Phoenix headed toward a 110-degree day Tuesday, its second straight in record territory, but that was nearly cool compared to another record 117 for Lake Havasu City and 116 in Bullhead City.

"Your brain goes numb," said Brad Meyer, a roofer Lake Havasu who found himself still working on a roof at 3 p.m. Monday.

Meyer said he generally starts work at daylight - "you can probably get started about 5 a.m. easily and try to kick off by 12 or 1 in the afternoon" - but the keys are low humidity and drinking plenty of water and restoring electrolytes through a drink like Gatorade.

The heat wave broke or was close to breaking in much of California on Tuesday after three days of record highs.

Widespread air conditioner use prompted utility regulators to declare a "stage two emergency" Monday, causing some businesses to close early to conserve electricity. The businesses shut down in times of unusually high demand in exchange for discounted power.

The power grid was back to normal Tuesday as temperatures moderated. The heat wave struck while some power plants were down for pre-summer maintenance, said Patrick Dorinson, spokesman for the Independent System Operator, which oversees the state's power grid.

Dorinson said easing temperatures forecast for the rest of the week would allow maintenance to continue without a problem.

"We're looking at a much better picture today, both weather-wise and with the system," Dorinson said.

The Squaw Valley ski resort near Lake Tahoe expected to stay open for skiers and snowboarders Memorial Day weekend, but may have to close some runs, spokeswoman Katja Dahl said.

Mammoth Mountain ski resort in Central California expects to stay open into June, said Joani Saari, spokeswoman for the ski park.

"Last week we had four inches of new snow. It's been weird," she said.

The drastic change in temperatures the past two weeks has been tough on construction workers, said Ken Scheurer, a carpenter foreman on a Sacramento hotel construction project. He reminded his crew during their weekly safety meeting to bring lots of water and sunscreen to work.

"We deal with the heat," he said. "We get used to it. It's how you keep your job."

When the temperature topped 100 in Sacramento this week, restaurant manager Lu Mohatt decided to have a sale - 10 percent off for customers who picked up their own orders.

"I hate to send my runners out in the heat," she said. "I'm always after them to drink more water and stay out of the heat when it's like this."

With temperatures still in the upper 90s Tuesday, the cafe's sidewalk tables sat empty as customers sought indoor, air conditioned spots.

The Sacramento Air Quality Management District issued air quality advisories declaring Monday and Tuesday "Spare the Air" days because of high levels of ground-level ozone caused by heat and vehicle emissions.

Even San Francisco, usually foggy and cool well into spring and early summer, saw record hot weather this week, topping 93 degrees Sunday. That broke the state's oldest record for the day, 86 degrees, set in 1886.

The heat that baked Southern California through the weekend gave way Tuesday as damp ocean air pushed in.

Dense fog cut visibility on roads along the coast while light drizzle fell from gray skies in some areas. At midmorning Tuesday the mercury had reached only 63 in downtown Los Angeles, where the normal high for the date is 74 and the record is 92, set in 1932.

The mountains and deserts, however, were expected to stay hot, with highs ranging from 80s and 90s to above 100 in some areas.