Beautiful fall weather in Philadelphia region this week; tracking Hurricane Milton in the Tropics
A beautiful, seasonable October stretch is underway in our area this week. Today and Wednesday will have seasonably cool temperatures, followed by a reinforcing shot of cool air Wednesday night. Thursday and Friday will likely stay in the 60s, with morning lows in the 40s. Friday morning looks to be the chilliest of the week, and then we rebound into the 70s by the weekend.
Speaking of lows in the 40s, the average first occurrence of lows in the 40s in Philly is Sept. 30. We are behind schedule but nowhere near the record latest first occurrence, which is Oct. 20.
The main weather story across the nation is Hurricane Milton. Milton rapidly intensified Monday, exploding from a Category 1 to a Category 5 hurricane by 10:55 a.m. Milton went from a Tropical Storm to a Category 5 in less than 24 hours. At one point, Milton's wind speeds reached 180 mph, on par with storms like Irma, Rita and Mitch.
Milton weakened a bit to a Category 4 earlier Tuesday but is once again a Category 5 storm with winds up to 165 mph. It is expected to keep fluctuating in strength over the next 24 hours or so.
The current track has Milton making landfall late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning as a Category 4 or possibly strong Category 3 hurricane right over the city of Tampa, which would make it the strongest hurricane to directly make landfall in that area in over a century.
With its northeast trajectory, the west coast of Florida needs to brace for another major hurricane, with winds that could likely gust over 150 mph and widespread rainfall of 5 inches to 8 inches. Storm surge flooding is now expected to reach 10-15 feet in some areas, including the Tampa Bay region, meaning homes that have already been gutted from Helene's flooding will likely be inundated again.
In addition, the storm surge flooding from Helene wiped out barrier islands and destroyed beaches, meaning the area is less protected from Milton's surge. This would be a cataclysmic event for the Tampa area, with storm surge flooding reaching the second story of homes and businesses. In addition to the storm surge, which is the most dangerous facet of the storm, the gusty winds at landfall could scatter the debris piles from Helene all across the region. Some spots in northern Florida could also receive upward of half a foot of rain from Milton.
As always, the NEXT Weather Team will keep you and your family ahead of the storm and alert you to potential impacts. As of this writing, our area will not feel any impact from Milton, but if you have friends or family in that area, please urge them to follow the evacuation warnings as this potentially once-in-a-lifetime hurricane bears down on the region.
Here's your 7-day forecast:
Tuesday: Sunny, crisp. High 70, Low 50.
Wednesday: Beautiful fall day. High 71, Low 48.
Thursday: Cool! Some sun. High 64, Low 48.
Friday: Mostly sunny. High 68, Low 44.
Saturday: Sunny, warmer. High 75, Low 53.
Sunday: Gorgeous day! High 72, Low 51.
Monday: Cooling down. High 63, Low 55