COOLING IT FIRE RISK, HEAT HINT AT HOT TIMES AHEAD.

Byline: Holly Edwards Staff Writer

San Fernando Valley residents flocked to local swimming pools Monday, seeking relief from 90-degree temperatures, while firefighters struggled to contain a handful of wildfires sparked during the driest year on record.

The near-record high temperatures were expected to ease today, but National Weather Service officials said there would be a slight warming trend at the end of the week.

With annual rainfall totals running 10 inches below normal - the Los Angeles area has gotten slightly more than 4 inches of rain since last July 1, compared with 14 inches normally - firefighters are prepared for the worst.

Firefighters quickly extinguished a two-acre grass fire Monday afternoon near Santa Clarita and a smaller grass fire in the Palmdale area. They also expect to contain a 5,000-acre brush fire in the Bouquet Canyon area of Santa Clarita today.

``We're definitely diving headfirst into fire season,'' said Michael Brown, a Los Angeles County Fire Department inspector. ``Any time you have these kind of high temperatures, low humidity and high brush, you're going to have a high fire hazard.''

Meanwhile, a fast-moving fire charred about 300 acres in the unincorporated Las Flores area of Orange County near Rancho Santa Margarita. Flames raged near the back yards of multimillion-dollar housing communities, prompting the call for voluntary evacuations of about 200 homes, said Dave Romano of the Orange County Fire Authority.

By late Monday afternoon, the scorching temperatures hadn't broken the 101-degree record for the day set in the San Fernando Valley in 1976, but Weather Service officials said the temperatures were about 12 degrees above normal in the Valley.

Chatsworth was the Valley's hot spot Monday, reaching 97 degrees, while Northridge topped out at 91 degrees. Glendale recorded a high of 90 degrees, and Pasadena hit 92 degrees, weather officials said.

The intense heat was created by a large high-pressure system over the ocean coupled with a low-pressure system over the valleys, officials said. The combination prevented the cooling air from the ocean from coming ashore, and blew heated air from the high desert into the valleys, said Bill Hoffer, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

``That great big, ol' fat high-pressure area off the coast and the low- pressure system on land is making it hot,'' Hoffer said. ``But these warming trends are normal this time of year.''

Hoffer said the offshore high-pressure system would ease somewhat in upcoming days, and that temperatures would drop to the high 70s. By the weekend, he said, temperatures would rise again to the lower 80s, but stay well below the 90-plus temperatures of the past few days.

While most city pools aren't scheduled to open until June 22, a few year-round pools in the Valley were busier than usual as residents sought relief from the heat.

``Everyone was right here in line as soon as we opened,'' said Jose Magana, who works at the city-operated Hubert H. Humphrey Pool in Pacoima. ``There's a lot of people here just trying to stay cool.''

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Photo:

(1 -- 2 -- color) At Universal CityWalk, Chiya Tiwari, 2, of India finds relief from Monday's heat in a fountain. Left, Patricia Mena of Canoga Park gives Sunny a welcome drink at Warner Park.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer

John Lazar/Staff Photographer