Another hot day on tap, followed by cooling and possible drizzle

Southern California will endure one more hot day before conditions cool off, forecasters said.

Thursday will mark the end of this week's heat wave, according to the National Weather Service, with temperatures hitting the mid-90s. But it will not be quite as hot as Wednesday, when several new records were set.

The weather service said temperatures Wednesday reached record highs throughout Southern California, including some readings that topped the 100-degree mark.

The temperature reached a record 101 degrees in Santa Ana about 2 p.m. -- 22 degrees higher than the previous record, which was set last year. The average high for Nov. 3 in Santa Ana is 72 degrees.

In Long Beach, the temperature reached the 100-degree mark shortly after 2 p.m., trumping the previous record of 94 degrees set in 1994.

Others communities at or above the century mark: Chino, San Gabriel and the Whittier Hills, 100; Pasadena, 101; and Anaheim, 102.

Cooling will begin Friday, with drizzle possible by the weekend, forecasters said.

-- Rick Rojas