7:00 AM | Another summerlike day with heat and humidity; strong storms possible today and Thursday; much cooler this weekend

6-Day Forecast

Today

Clouds this morning, partial sunshine this afternoon, very warm and humid, chance for showers and thunderstorms this afternoon and any storm that develops can be strong, highs in the mid 80’s

Tonight

Mostly cloudy, mild, chance for showers and thunderstorms and any storm that forms can be strong, low-to-mid 60’s

Thursday

Mostly cloudy, warm and humid, showers and thunderstorms likely and some of the storms can be strong-to-severe, near 80

Thursday Night

Mostly cloudy, mild early, turning cooler late, chance for showers and thunderstorms, mid-to-upper 50’s by morning

Friday

Mostly cloudy, breezy, cooler, chance for residual showers, upper 60's

Saturday

Slow clearing, windy, cool, still cannot rule out a couple of showers, low-to-mid 60's

Sunday

Mostly sunny, breezy, cool, mid-to-upper 60's

Monday

Partly sunny, still on the cool side, near 70

Discussion

A taste of summer will continue today in the Mid-Atlantic region as temperatures will climb well up into the 80’s in most locations and humidity levels will stay on the high side. Dew points climbed into the middle 60’s on Monday in the Mid-Atlantic region and then they reached the even more stifling upper 60’s on Tuesday to go along with summerlike temperatures. Showers and thunderstorms can break out at just about any time this afternoon and evening although much of the time will be rain-free. Any storm that forms this afternoon or evening can be on the strong side with some briefly heavy rainfall and perhaps hail and high wind gusts. By tomorrow, a strong cold front will be moving through the Ohio Valley on its way to the east coast and this will enhance the chances for shower and thunderstorm activity in the Philly metro region and there is a decent chance that strong-to-severe storms will develop later tomorrow and tomorrow night in the entire region between the Carolinas and New England.

Once the cold front reaches the east coast by early Friday, it will tend to slow down a bit as a coastal storm develops and this will allow for mostly cloudy skies to continue on Friday along with cooler conditions and the threat for residual showers and this may even linger into Saturday as well. By later in the weekend, strong Canadian high pressure will build into the Mid-Atlantic region and, similar to many previous springtime scenarios, much colder-than-normal air will spread to the eastern states with this high pressure system. As a result, it does not look at all like a “beach-type” weekend for coastal locations in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, and frost is actually not out of the question for some interior, higher elevation locations. Cool and dry weather is likely to continue into the latter part of the Memorial Day weekend.

One final note: the tornado that struck Oklahoma on Monday has now been upgraded to an "EF-5" classification level which is the most intense type on the "Enhanced Fugita" scale and it is suggestive of 200+ mph winds.

Video

httpv://youtu.be/phbiaaLwpZk