Weekend cooldown to relieve Bay Area
Temperatures expected to drop Friday after days of persistent heat
The heatwave that baked parts of the Bay Area in triple digits on Thursday ushered in recordbreaking and recordtying temperatures across the region for a second day straight.
San Francisco Airport recorded 94 degrees — a two degree bump from its 2015 record high of 92 degrees. San Jose recorded a 99degree high, which broke the South Bay city’s record of 96 degrees set in 1950. Redwood City, Santa Rosa and Kentfield all entered tripledigit territory — with recorded temperatures of 100 degrees, 103 degrees and 100 degrees — and beat their previous records, respectively set in 1983, 1950 and 1995.
Oakland Airport tied its 1950 record high of 94 degrees and Moffett Field tied its 2015 record high of 95 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
Bay Area cities are expected to get a respite on Friday, when a seabreeze may develop and bring cooler conditions just in time for the weekend, the Weather Service said.
Temperatures are expected to drop as much as 10 degrees across the region. Cooling will continue over the weekend with tempera
tures in the midtoupper 60s by the bay and the 80s inland. By Sunday, some inland temperatures could fall into the upper 70s.
On Thursday, health officials advised people to drink water, wear hats and take it easy. This they did.
When the thermometer does what it’s been doing this week, they let anyone hang out beneath the air conditioner at the senior center. You don’t need to be a senior. You just need to be hot. Senior centers become “cooling centers,” open to all.
“It’s like a sauna out here,” said Kevin Bean, of Berkeley, as he headed for the front door of the South Berkeley Senior Center, where the cold water, the cold air and the hot bingo game was. “It’s very cool inside the building, unless all the seniors are talking at the same time.”
There were a lot of draws besides ice water. In the auditorium, the tap dancing class was in full swing. The dancers were tapping to Kansas City Blues, preparing for their big show next week.
“We’re not here to cool off,” said tap dancer Terri Kimball. “We tap dancers are used to being sweaty.”
In the lounge, there was a heated dominos game and “Bonanza” reruns on TV. The players slammed their dominos, the TV cowboys shot their sixguns and the air conditioner hummed along in the background.
Besides air conditioners, parasols work, too. Berhane Woldeabzghi, 84, was carrying a large black one as he took his daily morning walk on 59th Street in Oakland to keep his blood pressure down, as his doctor advised. “This helps,” he said of the parasol. San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Lauren Hernandez contributed to this report.
“It’s like a sauna out here. It’s very cool inside the building, unless all the seniors are talking at the same time.” Kevin Bean, South Berkeley Senior Center visitor