An early-autumn San Francisco Bay Area heat wave that was originally forecast to last two to three days persisted for more than a week, bringing an unusual spell of sweltering weather in October. The heat persisted,

Along the coast and the Bay, the relief was expected to begin Tuesday, with temperatures in places such as Oakland and San Mateo not exceeding 80 degrees. San Francisco, which boiled at a record 97 degrees on Sunday, is expected to have a high of 73 Tuesday and 66 on Wednesday.

The weeklong heat wave, which ended Tuesday, set several new weather records while matching others across the North Bay. High temperatures peaked at or above 95 degrees in downtown Santa Rosa for eight days, from Sept. 30 to Monday, which matches a previous record set in June 1981, National Weather Service meteorologist Dial Hoang said.