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Firefighters On Alert As LA Endures Heat Wave

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — A red-flag warning Sunday was in effect for the mountains and valleys of Los Angeles and Ventura counties as the Southland faced another day of triple-digit heat.

The National Weather Service said downtown was four degrees shy of setting a record as temperatures reached 105 degrees. By 1 p.m., the temperature in Long Beach, Fullerton and Santa Ana was 99 degrees.

County firefighters, along with state forestry teams were staged in the Santa Clarita Valley and foothills near Pasadena, where relative humidity was expected to drop below 10 percent at times.

On Saturday, Los Angeles firefighters began moving equipment and personnel into high fire danger areas, though no major fires were reported. City officials opened cooling centers in the San Fernando Valley and health experts urged residents to drink plenty of water and save outdoor exercise for the mornings or evenings.

Slack winds and a forecast of diminished chances of a Santa Ana wind swayed forecasters to drop the weather warning for the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys.

The heat wave is forecast to persist through Tuesday, with a slight cooling trend starting Wednesday.

(©2010 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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