First came hail, now comes warm, dry weather for Southland

March 06--This week started with rain and hail that blanketed the coast in Huntington Beach, but it will end with warm and dry temperatures.

A ridge of high pressure carrying a mass of warm and dry air will push temperatures into the 80s in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, according to the National Weather Service. The warm temperatures and light Santa Ana winds will persist into early next week.

Temperatures will range from 10 to 20 degrees above normal. But the warmer weather is unlikely to break any records, said meteorologist Mike Wofford of the National Weather Service in Oxnard.

By Sunday, Southern Californians could feel a slight cool-down.

Temperatures will drop about five degrees but will remain warm for the most part, so Southland residents should "get used to this," he said.

Relative humidity has also dropped into the teens and single digits, making for extremely dry conditions.

It appears February's warming trend will continue this month. The month was one of the warmest Februaries on record.

This week, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced a weak El Ni񯠨ad arrived and won't provide much relief for California's drought.

The warmer weather is a stark contrast to Monday, when pea-sized hail coated Huntington Beach.

Thunderstorms last weekend dumped 2.62 inches of rain in Santa Monica. The Malibu area got 1.96 inches of rain, downtown Los Angeles received nearly an inch and Thousand Oaks got .85 inches of rain, according to the weather service.