Farms and Shelters Brace for a Big Chill

The cool air that blew into Ventura County under flawless skies Thursday had farmers eyeing their thermometers and rescue missions preparing for a busy night.

With overnight temperatures expected to drop close to freezing in the Ojai Valley, the area’s citrus and avocado growers had wind machines and temperature alarms at the ready.

But they said if the forecast holds true, their crops would be safe.

“I’ve got my alarm set, and if it goes off, we’ll start our wind machines,� Ojai area rancher Robert Davis said. “But we’re not expecting it.�

In the Oxnard Plain, the National Weather Service forecast lows of about 43 degrees, which is not a threat to the area’s strawberry crops. But the temperatures Thursday were cold enough to force homeless people seeking a warm meal and bed into local shelters.

The National Guard armory on Oxnard’s K Street ran out of cots Wednesday night and Thursday morning as 127 people streamed in from the cold, Sgt. 1st Class Milton Ironfield said. Some had to rough it on the floor.

“But then our [National Guardsmen] sleep on the floor all the time,� he said.

Pastor Phil Wehry at the Ventura County Rescue Mission in Oxnard said 30 people slept in the chapel Wednesday night, and a few had drifted in Thursday in spite of the strong sun outside.

“We have had a rush, we certainly had,� he said. Although the chapel only sleeps about 50, he said the mission would accommodate as many people as possible.

“We’ll hand out beds as long as there’s a bed to hand out,� he said.

The cool temperatures came from northerly winds blowing behind a storm front that cleared the area Wednesday afternoon. And yet, chilly as 35-degree evenings might seem to humans, they pose little threat to Ventura County crops.

Lemons and oranges, for instance, can easily withstand a brief brush with freezing air, and suffer damage only after the temperature drops below 28 degrees for several hours.

“It’s like when you make ice for a party--it takes awhile,� Ojai area rancher Tony Thacher said.

The thick skin of citrus fruits, he said, shields the interior during minor freezes.

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“An orange takes awhile to freeze,� he said.

Davis said he has not needed to run his wind machines yet this season. Temperatures in his orchards off Gridley Road briefly bottomed out at 29.5 degrees Dec. 21, he said, but otherwise the season has been too warm and too wet to permit frost, with rain clouds often sealing in warm air at night.

As a member of a family that has ranched the Ojai area since 1938, Davis understands crop protection. Six years ago, his family lost about one-third of its crop to a brutal freeze.

They did not lose more, he said, because family members pitched a stubborn battle against the cold, using wind machines, diesel-fueled smudge pots and a helicopter to churn and warm the frigid air.

“We felt that it paid to really protect,� he said.

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In comparison, Thursday night’s lows, expected to drop no lower than 33 degrees in Ojai, according to agricultural meteorologist Terry Schaeffer, did not warrant much concern, Davis said.

Cool temperatures were expected to return Friday night, with most of the county falling into the 40s, according to the National Weather Service.

Today’s forecast calls for sunny skies throughout the county, with temperatures in the mid-60s.

Saturday and Sunday should see daytime temperatures climbing toward 70 degrees, with a chance of rain Sunday night.