BLOG: The Heat Is On
A heat advisory is in effect through 8 p.m. Also, a code orange air quality alert is in effect. The air is becoming unhealthy for the sensitive breathing groups. They will likely be issued again tomorrow.
We are now getting in on a huge heat wave that has been gripping a lot of the country. From Minnesota down back into the Rockies, record high temperatures have been falling the last few days. We are already at 93 degrees with a heat index of 97 degrees as of 1 p.m. today around here. The record is 97 degrees set back in 1999. We are probably going to break that record this afternoon while the heat index tops 100 degrees. And this heat is going to stick around tomorrow. The record high for tomorrow is 98 degrees, last tied way back in 1933. We will come close and could even break that record, too, while the heat index likely tops 100 once again. Then, a cold front comes our way.
There is the chance for late day or evening thunderstorms tomorrow as the cold front moves our way. It will lay out over the mid-Atlantic on Friday before a new area of energy moves along it Saturday into Sunday. What that means for us is that our thunderstorm chances are going up, while the temperatures come down. These will not be all day rain events, but with that front draped over our area, there will be scattered showers and thunderstorms each and every day. At the same time, highs could still reach 90 on Friday before dropping back into the 80s over the weekend.
Even when the heat does back off, it will remain warm around here. In fact, we have topped out above average every day since May 22 - when we actually tied the average high temperature on the date. The average high that we have hit for June so far is 86.4 degrees as of today. That is only going to go up after the next few days.
