Warm, dry weather expected to peak mid-week in San Diego County

Warm, dry and mostly clear weather is likely to continue in San Diego County this week, as moderate to locally strong Santa Ana winds continue along the coastal mountain slopes, foothills, and into the valleys through Monday, forecasters said Sunday.

“Periods of weaker Santa Ana winds will continue through the remainder of the week,” according to the National Weather Service. “A warming trend continues, with temperatures peaking around the middle of the week.”

Wednesday and Thursday will likely be the warmest days, the NWS added.

Peak wind gusts Sunday morning reached 60-70 mph in the San Diego County foothills. Gusts were generally in the 30-45 mph range in the breezier valley of San Diego County, with gusts of 15-30 mph as far as the coast.

Winds will still be moderate to locally strong through Monday afternoon, and a wind advisory remains in effect until mid-afternoon Monday for the mountains and valleys.

The warm, dry air mass will remain in place along with the offshore winds, and each afternoon will be slightly warmer through Wednesday and Thursday.

“The ridge of high pressure that’s keeping those Santa Ana winds in place is going to also provide a big warm-up for the middle towards the end of the week and then we head into the weekend, and we’ll settle right around 75 degrees,” said NBC 7 meteorologist Angelica Campos.