Sweaty February? Northern California temperatures expected to break records this week
It’s going to be a scorcher, as far as early February goes.
Temperatures in some parts of the Sacramento Valley will likely break records this week, as forecasts show highs across Northern California reaching about 15 degrees warmer than normal, ranging from the mid-70s to mid-80s.
After forecast highs in the low 70s on Tuesday, downtown Sacramento is expected to reach 76 degrees Thursday.
That would break the Feb. 10 record of 74 degrees, set in 1988, the National Weather Service said in an infographic. The historic average for the date is 61 degrees.
The capital city is forecast to reach 75 degrees Friday, which would tie a record set Feb. 11, 2020; and again on Saturday, which would edge out the all-time mark of 74 set Feb. 12, 1996.
Sacramento’s warmest February day ever recorded came Feb. 15, 2016, when the city reached 78 degrees, weather service records show.
It’ll be hotter this week farther north. Redding is forecast to reach 85 degrees Thursday and 86 on Friday, which would beat respective records of 80 and 82 degrees, both set in 1971.
Stockton and Modesto are also expected to reach the mid-70s late in the week, breaking or tying all-time records.
There’s no sign of precipitation on the horizon.
Sacramento’s forecasts call for sunny, clear skies with mild wind. Temperatures in the mid-70s could last through at least Sunday, expected to dip slightly by Monday to around 71 degrees. Overnight lows will range be around 45 degrees, according to the weather service.
Highs will warm up to the upper 50s or low 60s near South Lake Tahoe by the end of this week and into the weekend.
Weather and emergency officials caution that even if the weather is unseasonably warm, waterways remain very cold and dangerous this time of year.
Last weekend, a 72-year-old Truckee man drowned after a group of six ice skaters fell through the ice at Stampede Reservoir, north of Lake Tahoe.
“We urge everyone to stay off the ice on area lakes,” the Truckee Fire Protection District wrote in a social media statement following the incident. “It is impossible to know the safety and stability of the ice, especially with the recent warmer temperatures.”
