Enjoy the warmth and sunshine, because forecasters say an unseasonable pattern of high temperatures in Southern California will end after Monday, bringing cooler weather and showers later this week.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been stuck in this pretty warm and dry pattern but that\u2019s all going to change starting Tuesday,\u201d said Ryan Kittell, meteorologist with the National Weather Service Oxnard office. <\/p>\n
The hot summer-like days that stretched from January into early February are pretty typical weather patterns for the winter season in Southern California, according to forecasters with the National Weather Service.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe live in a unique place where we get the offshore flow and those Santa Ana winds during our wintertime, and that\u2019s the main driver for the warm and dry period that we\u2019ve had over the last couple of weeks,\u201d Kittell said. <\/p>\n
Once a storm approaches, the winds change direction. Instead of coming from the east, the winds will come from the ocean and provide a cooler air mass, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is very typical for us to have these pretty sharp swings,\u201d Kittell said. \u201cIt\u2019s not that typical that we have had such a long, pretty much a full-month period with no rain and pretty warm conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Forecasters said Monday will be the last warm day of the pattern, with highs around 10 degrees above normal. The coastal and mountain areas will be in the high 60s, and downtown Los Angeles will have a high of 80 degrees.<\/p>\n
Temperatures are expected to drop into the 60s on Tuesday and remain there for the rest of the week. There might be a small warm-up on Friday but it will stay pretty cool compared to what Southern California has been experiencing the last few weeks, Kittell said. <\/p>\n
These lower temperatures are expected to persist into next week, \u201cbecause we have a series of storms headed our way,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
The first one will reach the Los Angeles area late Tuesday night and into early Wednesday with light to moderate rain. Expected rain totals are predicted to be anywhere between half an inch to one inch, forecasters say.<\/p>\n
\u201cUsually that type of rain just gives us issues on the roads with some increased traffic and maybe some minor flooding on the roads,\u201d Kittell said. <\/p>\n
On top of the wet conditions, some strong winds will accompany the storm, especially in the mountain areas where gusts are expected to reach 30 mph to 50 mph. <\/p>\n
The National Weather Service issued a high surf advisory for Ventura County beaches Monday morning because of large breaking waves of 4 to 7 feet with dangerous rip currents. The advisory will remain in effect until Wednesday night. <\/p>\n