Dangerous Heat for the DNC

THE HOTTEST DAYS IN YEARS

There’s no easy way to put this…this weekend is going to be a scorcher. We’re forecasting a high of 97 degrees, which is the warmest we’ve been since July 18, 2013, over three years ago. If you can escape to the beaches, it will be a little cooler (somewhere around 90) but the sea breeze won’t be as potent as usual. That’s because our sea surface temperatures are running at least 5 degrees above average. If you’re just coming in to town for the convention, think about a day trip to the Jersey Shore until convention activities get started on Monday. Sightseeing in Philadelphia will be exceptionally hot. The good news for Saturday is that humidity will be low, so at least it’s a dry heat. Some places in our area will likely hit 100, though.[[387685871,C]]

Sunday will have the same outdoor air temperature but the humidity will already start to creep up a bit. That same 97 will feel like 101 or 102. Things get even worse on Monday, when the dew points move firmly into the oppressive category. The heat index will range between 105 and 110 degrees. This is very dangerous heat. Because of the moisture in the atmosphere, your sweat won’t actually cool you down all that much and it is very easy to get dehydrated. If you’re out protesting, the pavement will absorb the heat and hold on to it long after the sun goes down, in something called the “urban heat island effect.” We will hit the 90s before noon and stay there through 7 PM. Even the night won’t provide much relief, as we’re forecasting a low in the upper 70s. It’s also important to note that Monday has the best chance of thunderstorms. You’ll want to keep an eye to the sky and make sure you have some place to go through if one of them rolls through. Our NBC10 app will send a push alert when storms are 30 minutes away, which will give you ample time to get indoors somewhere. Lightning and damaging wind is possible, so it’s not a good idea to wait these out outdoors.

The weather story is a bit of a broken record. This same pattern continues for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. The temperatures decrease very gradually and the humidity comes down a bit as well, but we keep the storm threat in there for every day that week. They’ll be much more isolated but it will still be important to be weather aware. The heat index for the rest of the week will be around 100, as well.

We’re the only ones in town with a 10 day forecast…our “10 day on 10.” Here’s the relevant days for the convention:[[387680451, C]]

If you’re coming to our city for the convention, welcome. We’ll keep you posted right here as the weather changes. If you’re from around here and have some vacation time, I have two words for you…Shore Week. Seriously.

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