Weather heating up California amid stay-at-home-orders – drought conditions also return

The weather will be nice, but it’s all about flattening the curve.

Forecasts of warmer weather this weekend came not long after Thursday’s news conference in which Gov. Gavin Newsom reiterated the state’s stay-at-home-orders to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

By Friday afternoon, Sacramento Executive Airport, Stockton and other areas around the region had reached the 90-degree mark for the first time this year on Friday, according to the National Weather Service. The climb to 90, according to NWS officials, came two weeks later than the average.

Newsom shared concerns over Californians having been sheltering in place for more than a month, wanting to break out of stay-at-home-orders as forecasts indicated trends of warmer weather.

“We’re walking into a very warm weekend. That means people are prone to want to go to the beaches, parks, playgrounds and go on a hike,” Newsom said. “And I anticipate there will be significant increase in volume, but I also think if there is, and people aren’t practicing physical distancing, I’ll be announcing, in a week or so, these numbers going back up. I don’t think anybody wants to hear that. I don’t want to share that information, but that’s really less up to me and up to all of you.”

The best advice: Keep your distance and stay protected. That probably includes sunscreen.

The Sacramento Valley will have clear and sunny skies with highs are forecast in the upper 80s to low 90s, with the temperature reaching 88 degrees, before tapering off through Sunday to 84 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.

“High temperatures are expected to be 10-15 degrees above normal through the weekend, even higher early next week,” forecasters said. “Try to plan your outdoor activities early or late in the evening if you can.”

Forecasts for the foothills are slightly cooler, with highs in the 80s, while highs in the Sierras will run from the mid 60s to low 70s.

The National Weather Service also said that record highs are possible Tuesday and Wednesday, which could create risks for sensitive groups. “Valley highs in the low to mid 90s approaching record territory Tuesday-Wednesday,” the NWS said in a social media post. “Take precautions if you’re sensitive to the heat!”

The warm weather also foreshadows a summer that could bring high fire conditions. On Thursday, scientists at the the U.S. Drought Monitor said 30 percent of California has fallen into moderate or severe drought conditions.

Much of the Sacramento region was placed in the moderate drought category, while areas near the foothills were placed a tier lower as “abnormally dry.”

For the first time this year, Del Norte County, as well as portions of Siskiyou, Trinity and Humboldt counties, were classified as under “extreme” drought conditions. They area classified as the second-highest drought condition made up the 4.7 percent of the state as of Tuesday, the monitor service said.

Data released by U.S. Drought Monitor on Jan. 1 assessed 96 percent of California lands as having no measurable level of drought, while data released on the same day in 2019 deemed more than 92 percent of the state as having some level of dryness.

The last official drought was declared by Gov. Jerry Brown in January 2014. But, just last week, a study released said California and the rest of the West are enduring a continuing megadrought that ranks among the worst on record.

Despite the occasional wet year, researchers at Columbia University said the period starting in 2000 has been about as bad as any of four lengthy droughts recorded since the late 800s. While the study period ended in 2018, researchers said the West remains trapped in what they called a historic megadrought.

This story was originally published April 24, 2020 at 3:07 PM.