Suddenly it’s summer in our area -- for now

Summer weather hit the Newport-Mesa area early, with temperatures reaching well into the 80s over the weekend.

On Monday, Newport Beach and Costa Mesa hit temperatures of 83 degrees with less than 20% humidity, officials said. The record high of 90 for the area was hit in 1997, forecasters said. Skies were pretty much clear aside from a strip of smoke stretching from the east, where two fires broke out Sunday.

The first one, in Anaheim Hills, began after a stolen car was set on fire in a ravine along the 241 toll road, officials said. That fire and another blaze just a few miles east in Corona have sent ash and smoke across the northern part of Orange County since Sunday.

The National Weather Service issued a red flag warning for most of Southern California through 7 p.m. Monday.

Temperatures are expected to fall by the end of the week, cooling off a couple of degrees each day, National Weather Service spokesman Noel Isla said Monday. Humidity should go up as well, with patchy clouds and fog late at night and into the mornings, forecasters said.

“We’re looking at temperatures mainly in the upper 60s to 70s, compared to the 80s today,” Isla said.

Newport Beach locals might think they had missed Memorial Day, judging by the enormous crowds on the Balboa Peninsula over the weekend. Traffic along Newport Boulevard was stop-and-go all the way into Costa Mesa and onto the 55 westbound freeway.

Newport Beach lifeguards anticipate large crowds on the beach any day of the year temperatures run high, Lifeguard Capt. Brent Jacobsen said.

“If the weather stays the way it is right now, we will increase our patrols” and possibly open a tower, Jacobsen said Monday. Newport Beach lifeguards are accepting applications through Wednesday for part-time summer positions.

The surf has been moderate, with occasional head-high sets, Jacobsen said.

“People who don’t have a background in the ocean can find themselves in trouble,” he said. “Always approach it with caution.”