The hot and mostly dry weather will continue for the next several days as high pressure aloft swings across the middle part of the country. Temperatures will soar into the upper 90s Thursday, with triple digit heat expected this weekend. Some records could fall Saturday.
We'll start Thursday with hazy sunshine. Temperatures will climb from the upper 70s to the upper 90s this afternoon. While little rain is expected, a couple of showers could pop up along the coast, perhaps as far north as I-10. Rain chance will hold at 20%. Temperatures across central Louisiana could reach 100. Heat index values will stay around 105, so just under the heat advisory threshold.
As the ridge of high pressure strengthens this this weekend, most of Acadiana, except for the immediate coast, will reach the triple digits. A record could be set in Lafayette on Saturday, where the current record sits at 98.
The forecast calls for at least 5 straight days with 100 degree heat which is pretty unusual for this region. Looking back at the record books, the last time we had several consecutive days above 100 was August 30 through September 5th of 2000. Not only were we hitting 100 daily, but we had a 104 degree high on August 30th and a 103 degree high on September 3rd!
**FUN FACTS**
Normally we have about 94 days a year with 90+ temperatures. In the past 20 years the most was 130 days in 2005 and the least was 78 days in 2008. Our first 90 degree day this year was April 1. As of July 27, we've had 65 days at or above 90. If we see the average in August, September and October, we'll end up with around 120-125 days this year. Will we beat 2005?
Heat index values over the weekend may exceed 108, therefore heat advisories are likely starting Saturday and lasting into next week. Night time lows will only drop into the upper 70s and lower 80s.
The tropics look to be getting more exciting over the next few days too. The National Hurricane Center is watching a disturbance moving into the central Atlantic. They're giving the area a 40% chance for development over the next week. Over the past few days models have indicated a tropical system in the Atlantic, drifting toward North America. Early in the week, some models had this system clipping the east coast of the United States, but consecutive models have been trending toward a more offshore forecast. Bermuda may be dealing with a tropical system sometime next week.
