RESIDENTS FEELING STEAMY OVER WEATHER.

Byline: Eric Wahlgren Daily News Staff Writer

Finding a fan in Los Angeles was like looking for a waterfall in a desert Friday as weary residents bought out stock across the city to cope with yet another day of soupy, New York-in-the-summer-style heat.

Temperatures in the San Fernando Valley hit the century mark for the third straight day, with humidity in the 30 percent range giving the heat that particularly hard-to-take muggy quality.

But forecasters are predicting milder weather this weekend, with the mercury today in the Valley expected to climb no higher than the mid-90s, thanks to cooling clouds and fog in the early morning.

``There isn't going to be as much heating,'' said Vladimir Ryshko, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Oxnard.

Ryshko said the Weather Service expects temperatures to drop by another two degrees on average Sunday.

Although Friday's temperatures did not break any records, the city continued its record stretch of days without measurable rain: 199.

But in a sign that the heat wave is finally letting up just a little, Chatsworth logged the Valley's highest temperature at 100, which was six degrees lower than Thursday's high in Van Nuys.

Meanwhile Friday, Van Nuys recorded a high of 99, with Woodland Hills reporting 97 and Burbank 95.

The Los Angeles Civic Center reached a high of 91 degrees, about 9 degrees hotter than the average for that day but still 7 degrees cooler than Thursday's high.

With the humidity topping 30 percent in the Valley, the heat index - the temperature it actually feels like when humidity is factored in - revealed that the already sweltering weather felt hotter to residents.

Van Nuys, for instance, recorded a temperature of 99 degrees at 4 p.m., but with the heat index, which accounts for humidity, it felt like 103.

It was the punishing heat combined with the drippy humidity that drove Angelenos to hardware and home appliance stores on often-futile quests for a fan.

Shoppers at a Kmart in West Los Angeles were greeted with, ``We're all sold out'' when they entered the store looking for fans.

``We're trying to get them in, but there aren't any available at this time,'' said a store manager, who declined to give his name, adding that about 40 people inquired about fans Friday.

Larry Sustin, owner of Pacoima Hardware, said he still had a few fans left, despite a steady stream of customers depleting his stock.

``There has been a run on fans,'' Sustin said. ``They are hard to get because most stores are clearing out their summer merchandise.''

Other Angelenos who could take the day off headed for air-conditioned malls or for beaches like Zuma in Malibu, which hosted about 20,000 people Friday.