Freezing weather approaches record level in Los Angeles County

A cold front that’s been holding Southern California temperatures near record lows is finally loosening its frosty embrace and making way for relatively warmer weather this weekend, the National Weather Service said.

“Today we bottomed out,” NWS senior forecaster Andrew Rorke said Wednesday morning.

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Though only one record was challenged – Camarillo Airport was 33 degrees on Tuesday, matching the low for that day in 1948 – cities across the region were four to eight degrees cooler than normal through Wednesday, Rorke said.

“Redondo Beach was 38 degrees, which isn’t freezing, but I’m sure residents there felt like it was,” Rorke quipped.

It was even colder overnight in the high desert, where freezing temperatures have been the story since Monday.

Palmdale temperatures dipped to 23 degrees, and Lancaster was a frosty 21 before sunrise.

In Ventura County, Ojai dropped to 27 degrees.

“There’s agriculture out there for them to be concerned about,” Rorke said.

The cold was the product of cold air flowing south from Idaho that avoided its normal path over the Pacific, which pulls in warmer air, Rorke said. By the weekend, a low-pressure system is expected to move in, raising temperatures and possibly bringing light rain.

For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna.

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