Hot dogs. Apple pie. Get rid of all traces.
After a month of intense heat baked much of the United States, the Fourth of July weekend will bring “some typical summertime weather,” in the words of Bob Oraveck, a lead forecaster with the National Weather Service.
That’s code for hot and humid, as it usually is across most of the country around this time of year. Mr. Oraveck stated that rain could affect weekend activities but only in small amounts.
He said that the central parts of the country would experience temperatures above average but not the record-breaking heat of the first three weeks in June.
On Saturday, heavy rain and scattered thunderstorms could hit the East Coast and Gulf States, adding to the mugginess. And parts of the Southwest, where the seasonal monsoon falls at this time of year, could be a “total washout,” Mr. Oraveck said.
Cities in the West have had to cancel fireworks displays due to concerns about wildfires and droughts.
Here’s what you can expect for the holiday weekend:
In the East
It’s going to get steamy. It will be warm and pleasant in the Northeast on Friday. The humidity will increase over the weekend, making Monday a humid July 4.
New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, Boston, and Washington could see heavy rains on Saturday afternoon and into the evening. Then again on Sunday, Mr. Oraveck stated. Highs will be in the mid-80s to mid-90s.
In the Central U.S.
It’s going to be hot. Not as hot as June, when heat records were set across the region, but temperatures are still going to be high for this time of year — about five to 10 degrees above average across the Central Plains and the Great Lakes into the Mid-Atlantic States.
This means temperatures will reach the low to mid-90s at many locations, with triple-digit temperatures possible in the Central and Southern Plains.
Oraveck stated that there will be scattered thunderstorms throughout the region, from the Ohio Valley to the South and parts of the Southwest to the Rockies.
Down South
It’s going to be muggy (notice a theme?High heat away from the coast, and downpours near to the Gulf of Mexico. For the first weekend, scattered, slow moving thunderstorms will be spreading across the Gulf Coast of the Southeast. There will also be numerous showers along coastal Texas and Southwest Louisiana.
Flash floods could occur on the Texas coast or elsewhere in the Southeast due to the weather conditions.
Out West
Despite the canceled fireworks displays, temperatures will be below average across the West Coast over the holiday weekend. Highs will still be in the upper 90s in some places, Mr. Oraveck said, but that’s a few degrees lower than the average for early July.
Conditions are still dry and the region won’t get much rain. Hot and windy summer weather has already helped prepare the region for fast-moving wildfires. This includes one near Sacramento that caused hundreds of evacuations on Thursday.
Source: NY Times
