Record heat wave hits South, heads for East
While folks in Montana dig out from a historic “winter” storm, people in the South wonder how much longer this endless summer can last.
Unfortunately for the region’s heatweary residents – who endured one of the hottest Septembers on record – the warmth will continue even as the calendar turns to October on Tuesday.
More than a dozen daily record highs could fall each day through Thursday, the Weather Channel said. Some cities may have several days of record or nearrecord highs well into the 90s, including Atlanta; Birmingham, Alabama; Knoxville, Tennessee; and Tallahassee, Florida.
A few all-time record highs for the month of October could be in jeopardy, too.
The hot air that has baked the Southern states for weeks will push northeastward from Tuesday to Wednesday, bringing a resurgence of high temperatures in the 80s and 90s, Accuweather said. These temperatures are 10 to 20 degrees above average.
Hundreds of “record highs will be in jeopardy for many areas,” Accuweather meteorologist Tyler Roys said.
Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New York City, Baltimore and Washington are a few of the places where record highs may be set this week. Some of the heat records have been in place since the 1800s.
Schools that lack air conditioning may dismiss early during the summery surge, according to Accuweather.
Late this week, some relief should finally arrive to some of the heat-fatigued areas, the Weather Channel reported.
A cold front will make its way into the East by Friday, then at least give a glancing blow to parts of the South by next weekend.
The Weather Channel said this will knock high temperatures down to more typical early October readings, generally in the 50s or 60s in the Midwest and Northeast by late this week.
In portions of the Northeast, “the growing season may come to an end with the arrival of the chilly air,” Accuweather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said.