Mid-Week Heat Wave Will Dry Out Drought Parched Hillsides

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- The once lush green hillsides nourished by the mid-winter rains will continue to turn brown and fire prone this week as a slow-moving high pressure system buffets the San Francisco Bay Area with bone-dry winds and temperatures soaring to near record highs, forecasters predicted Monday.

The National Weather Service said temperatures will reach the low 90s on Thursday in the South Bay and only be prevented from setting new records from San Francisco to San Jose because of a similar heat wave in 1989.

During that record heat, downtown San Francisco reached 91, Redwood City 90 and Gilroy 96.

"It should be noted that a similar heat wave occurred in early April back in 1989 and many of those records may still stand," the weather service said. "Therefore, it is uncertain how many records may or may not be broken."

Normally at this time of year, forecasters said, the average temperature in the Bay Area hovers around degrees so most areas will at 15-20 degrees over that by mid-week.

One other thing is for certain, with every passing high pressure system, the hillsides will dry out just a little bit more.

"The recent rains brought a brief reprieve on fire weather charts, but that will be quickly erased," the weather service said. "Heightened fire weather concerns will return by weeks end with warm, dry, and breezy conditions."