By Reginald Stanley. Posted July 7, 2018, 12:26 AM.

A sweltering heat wave engulfed the region late this week, peaking on Friday just as monsoonal moisture began entering the region.

Record highs were shattered all across the region Friday afternoon, in some cases, all-time record highs were broken. WeatherCurrents' longest-running station in Temecula, in operation since August 1999, reached a temperature of 113.8 degrees Friday afternoon, breaking the previous record of 111.3 degrees on July 22nd, 2006. Lake Elsinore was the hottest of all WeatherCurrents stations on Friday - reaching a blistering 118.8 degrees, followed by nearby Wildomar with 117.2 degrees. Outside of the WeatherCurrents network, all-time record highs were broken throughout the Inland Empire, mountains and desert cities. The National Weather Service reported temperatures of 120 degrees in Chino and Thermal, on Friday afternoon.

Only Anza, Beaumont (Cherry Valley), De Luz, Fallbrook and Pinon Hills did not break all-time records in the WeatherCurrents network. Twelve remaining active stations recorded their highest temperatures in each respective station's history on Friday. Most currently active WeatherCurrents stations have been active for around a decade, except for some of the older stations such as Temecula, Murrieta and Hemet, which all have been in operation for over 15 years. WeatherCurrents contributor Jim Sappington, who has lived in Temecula Valley's Wine Country since 1987, recorded a temperature of 115.8 degrees on Friday afternoon - he reports this is the highest temperature he has observed at that location in all those years.

Monsoonal moisture became noticeable by early Friday afternoon, with increasing cloudiness encompassing inland communities. Thunderstorm activity was too weak and sporadic to be notable, however this may change Saturday for at least mountain communities. Temperatures are expected to still be very hot Saturday, although slightly lower than they were on Friday. The National Weather Service has issued an Excessive Heat Warning through 9 PM Saturday for inland communities.