October heat wave shatters records across Southern California Play

Tuesday was one of those mornings where the temperature out your door toward the ocean might be 15 degrees cooler than out your door facing the mountains.

At sunrise it was 71 degrees at Zuma Beach and 85 degrees at the ridge above Malibu High School.

The National Weather Service says the major heat wave will persist at least through Friday.

There was a whisper of a breeze off the ocean Tuesday morning right along Pacific Coast Highway.

Starting Friday into Sunday, temperatures will trend downward each day. There will, however, be a small chance of showers and thunderstorms due to moisture coming up from the leftovers of Hurricane Rachel.

Meteorologist Daniel Swain said Monday night that heat like this has never before been seen in Southern California. Tuesday is the fourth consecutive day of 100-degree temperatures or greater in downtown L.A.

That is already the longest such streak of consecutive 100-degree days in any October ever recorded.

Swain says it's true: there have been severe heat waves in Los Angeles in October, but nothing like this one. "I've been hearing with some local media outlets and commentators saying this is nothing unusual, it's always 100 degrees in October.

"And that just isn't true. It's never this hot these many days in a row and these many nights in a row."

Downtown Los Angeles broke its daily heat record Monday when it hit 104. The L.A. Times notes that the average number of 100-degree days during October in downtown L.A. is usually well below one. So far there have been four days above 100 in downtown L.A. this week, with number five and six likely Tuesday and Wednesday.

The National Weather Service began keeping records in the late 1800s. On Monday, Camarillo and Oxnard both shattered their records. They hit 99. The former record in Oxnard was 94.

The NWS does not break out heat records for Malibu.