atlanta — A long-term weather pattern is poised to blast hot air like a furnace across the eastern United States, as an unusual heat wave threatens to shatter record high temperatures Wednesday in major cities including New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
The heat is unusual in April, not only because it scorches most of the country so early in the year but also for its entire duration. Meteorologists say near-record temperatures are expected to continue through the end of this week.
The potentially dangerous heat comes next Severe storms hit Kansas, Minnesota and Wisconsin on MondayMore storms threaten Tuesday in the center of the country.
Although it’s not unprecedented to see temperatures as high as 90 degrees (32 C) on an April day, experts say the length of an April heat wave is rarely seen.
“This is unprecedented in terms of its duration for this time of year,” said John Viereck, chief meteorologist at forecasting company AccuWeather.com.
Starting Wednesday, Viereck said, “we’re going to be challenging for records starting primarily in Georgia, all the way up to the New York City area and back toward the Ohio Valley.”
The National Weather Service expects the temperature to reach around 86 degrees (30 degrees Celsius) in New York City’s Central Park on Wednesday. The record for this date is 87, which has stood since 1941.
The weather is expected to be even hotter in Philadelphia, where the maximum temperature on Wednesday is expected to reach 92 degrees (33.3 degrees Celsius). Other potential hotspots include Washington, D.C., which could see a high of 94 (34.4 degrees Celsius); and Atlanta, where the high is expected to reach 88 (31.1 degrees Celsius).
“It’s really, really impressive heat in the middle of April for sure,” Viereck said.
“The good thing about this is that the humidity is not at summer levels,” he added. This means that it will not be as hot as a hot July day.
However, the heat at the beginning of the season can be more stressful on people’s bodies since they don’t have a chance to acclimate.
“It’s one of those things where it’s more stressful on the body because you’re not used to it the first time,” Viereck said.
The heat is The No. 1 weather-related killer in the United Stateswarns the weather service. Infants and young children. Older adults, people with chronic medical conditions, and pregnant women are especially vulnerable to heat injury and death.
The National Weather Service said a strong ridge of high pressure feeding moisture into the southern Plains was responsible for bringing unusual heat to the eastern United States.
Meteorologists said that although Wednesday is a day when many records could fall, the heat wave will continue until Friday in many areas.
“Widespread to the mid-90s is expected on Friday across the lower elevations of the Carolinas, which could set additional daily records and possibly approach some monthly records,” the agency’s Weather Prediction Center wrote in a note.
The weather service said the heat wave should finally subside by Sunday as a strong cold front moves toward the East Coast, and then it should be “pleasantly cooler” by Monday as the front heads out to sea.