NYC preparing for year’s first official heat wave, with temps over 100 degrees: ‘Just stay indoors’
The Big Apple was rattled by severe thunderstorms Tuesday afternoon — as it prepares to be baked and battered by an “oppressive” heatwave this week.
The skies above New York City quickly turned from sunny to an ominous black in the middle of the afternoon before flash floods and wind gusts of up to 50 mph blasted the boroughs.
The worst of the deluge appeared to be over by the end of the afternoon, and the city was set to dry out during the evening hours, according to Fox Weather Center meteorologist Cody Braud.
The conditions for the storm was fueled by the “heat dome” that had been covering much of the US for weeks and has been rapidly expanding to bring stifling heat to the city, the expert said.
“This morning, there were some storms that were moving across the Northeast,” Braud explained.
“As the atmosphere continued to heat up, they became destabilized throughout the day. As they came to a maximum point, that’s when the storms started to reorganize, started to gain severe characteristics.”
The wild weather was set to leave a heatwave in its wake — the city’s first official one of the summer. A heatwave is defined by three or more consecutive days of temperatures in the 90s.
“The three [hottest days] are going to be Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, with the peak heat expected on Friday,” said Mathieu Blue, also a Fox Weather Center meteorologist.
“Wednesday is a wild card. It could [also] hit 90,” Blue said.
“Humidity will increase as we head towards the weekend as well, and humidity combined with the heat is what causes the oppression, basically,” the weather expert said.
An excessive heat advisory or warning is issued when the heat index reaches 95 to 99 degrees for two days or 100 to 104 degrees for any length of time, something that could happen Friday, according to the meteorologist.
The last time the city had an excessive heat advisory or warning was in August 2021.
New Yorkers are set to get a dose of extremes that much of the rest of the country has endured for most of the summer.
“A very large heat dome has been present across the South for weeks now, especially the Southwest,” Blue explained.
“It’s expanding to the north and east, and it’s going to be pushing those higher temperatures into the Northeast.
“Much of the country, up to 250 million Americans, will see above-average temperatures,” the forecaster predicted, saying only the Northwest being spared.
It also is a possibility that ongoing wildfire conditions from Canada could also add to New York’s oppressive air quality if wind patterns blow smoke south.
Another round of rain predicted for Thursday will not cool things off much, Blue warned.
“It will do little of relieving the heat, mainly because the humidity will be so high, that it’s, you know, still going to feel in the mid- to upper 90s,” the prognosticator said.
But there is some relief in sight toward the middle of the weekend.
“Saturday going into Sunday, a strong cold front will be moving into the Northeast, and that’s going to sweep out some of these higher temperatures, but mainly it’s going to knock down dew points, which will help the humidity,” Blue said.
The high temperatures pose dangers for people who work outside, those with health conditions, the elderly, and those without access to air conditioning.
New York City officials are expected to announce cooling centers for people who are at risk.
“Just stay indoors, stay in air conditioning, obviously stay hydrated, it’s really important, especially if you’re outdoors for any length of time — that you have a bottle of water on you and you’re staying as hydrated as possible,” Blue said.
“The higher the dew point gets, it’s harder for our bodies to cool down.”
