‘DANGEROUSLY HOT’

Meteorologists warn New Mexicans to drink plenty of water and limit outdoor activity as temperatures soar

“Dangerously hot” weather is expected to grow more intense as the week wears on, with highs of 100plus expected across much of the state through Friday.

Drink plenty of water this week, wear light, breathable clothing, avoid alcohol, and limit outdoor activity to early morning and late in the day, meteorologists warned Monday.

A northern front should bring cooler, wetter weather into New Mexico later in the week, but don’t expect much relief before Friday night or Saturday.

One bit of good news: Subdued winds should help firefighters keep wildfires under control this week.

The Middle Rio Grande Valley and many other areas will swelter with highs of 100 degrees or higher today through Friday, said Andy Church, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Albuquerque.

“It is pretty remarkable to see this kind of heat for several days in a row with no relief,” Church said during a weekly weather briefing Monday.

Albuquerque can expect highs to build from 100 today to 102 on Thursday, which is likely to be the hottest day this week statewide.

The last time Albuquerque recorded 100-degree highs for three consecutive days was in July 2010.

Forecast highs around the state on Thursday include: Rio Rancho, 103; Los Lunas, 107; Socorro, 106; and Tucumcari, 108.

Roswell is expected to hit a high of 109 on Thursday, 1 degree short of the city’s all-time high of 110.

Tucumcari racked up an all-time high temperature of 109 degrees on Saturday.

New Mexicans can look forward to “a pretty remarkable cool-down on Saturday,” Church said, together with “scattered and numerous thunderstorms.”

The front, expected to push into the state starting Friday, should lower highs to the 70s and 80s in northeastern New Mexico before spreading into the eastern plains on Saturday.

“Temperatures across the eastern part of the state will be 20 to 30 degrees cooler than they were on Friday,” Church said. “All that cold air works west on Saturday night into Sunday.”

By Monday, highs in Albuquerque should be in the 80s, with thunderstorms possible, he said.

GREG SORBER/JOURNAL From left, Jerome Michelbach, Vanessa Chavez and Aaliyah Saavadra, all of Albuquerque, take a leisurely pedal boat ride at Tingley Beach on Monday. Michelbach said that even though they were on the water, it was still a “little hot.” Meteorologists say...