Pattern change to finally stifle summerlike heat in western US
By
Mary Gilbert, AccuWeather meteorologist
Published May 10, 2020 9:52 AM EST
Hot car deaths are a common, but preventable tragedy. Kids and pets are still at risk in spring, even at lower outside temperatures.
After oppressive and record-breaking heat challenged the western United States, temperatures will finally ease back to normal levels this week.
Early on during Mother's Day weekend, the sting of summerlike heat had already begun to fade for many coastal cities and areas immediately inland. Downtown Los Angeles, for example, reached a high temperature of 79 F on Saturday, a full 10 degrees Fahrenheit lower than Friday's high.
However, heat refused to release its grip on cities farther inland, into the valleys and deserts of California, and portions of the Southwest where record heat continued.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
In California, Bishop, Montague and Mt. Shasta City all set record-high temperatures on Saturday, reaching 94, 92 and 86 respectively. These records were last set in 1960, 1987 and 1969 respectively.
Farther east, Reno, Nevada, reached a high of 88, breaking the previous record from 2001. And in Arizona, Phoenix recorded its sixth day in a row of 100-degree heat on Sunday.
Thankfully, AccuWeather meteorologists say the end of this record-breaking heat wave has come.
A storm advancing toward the West Coast on Monday will mark the arrival of a cooler pattern. Some much-needed rainfall will also return to Northern California and Oregon as the storm moves in.
As the storm comes ashore Monday afternoon and spreads showers over Northern California, temperatures will trend lower across the state. Many locations such as Sacramento, California, and Downtown Los Angeles are forecast to reach temperatures very close to average for this time of the year, in the 70s.
Even lower temperatures are expected for Tuesday before conditions plateau on Wednesday. By Tuesday, locations across the state of California will be around 20 degrees cooler than their hottest day of the past week.
Coastal communities dip into the upper 50s to lower 60s on Tuesday and Wednesday, while inland areas sag into the low to middle 70s. The typically hotter valley and desert locations will not miss out on the cooldown as temperatures are forecast to reach the upper 70s and upper 80s to low 90s respectively.
"The drop in temperatures is likely to make it easier for residents to find ways to more comfortably social distance outdoors amid the COVID-19 lockdown across the state," AccuWeather Meteorologist Courtney Travis said.
Those hoping for cooler conditions in the Desert Southwest will have to hold on a bit longer.
Cities like Phoenix will continue to flirt with triple-digit heat through Monday, before more seasonable temperatures in the lower 90s are forecast to arrive on Tuesday.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo
News / Weather Forecasts
Pattern change to finally stifle summerlike heat in western US
By Mary Gilbert, AccuWeather meteorologist
Published May 10, 2020 9:52 AM EST
Hot car deaths are a common, but preventable tragedy. Kids and pets are still at risk in spring, even at lower outside temperatures.
After oppressive and record-breaking heat challenged the western United States, temperatures will finally ease back to normal levels this week.
Early on during Mother's Day weekend, the sting of summerlike heat had already begun to fade for many coastal cities and areas immediately inland. Downtown Los Angeles, for example, reached a high temperature of 79 F on Saturday, a full 10 degrees Fahrenheit lower than Friday's high.
However, heat refused to release its grip on cities farther inland, into the valleys and deserts of California, and portions of the Southwest where record heat continued.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
In California, Bishop, Montague and Mt. Shasta City all set record-high temperatures on Saturday, reaching 94, 92 and 86 respectively. These records were last set in 1960, 1987 and 1969 respectively.
Farther east, Reno, Nevada, reached a high of 88, breaking the previous record from 2001. And in Arizona, Phoenix recorded its sixth day in a row of 100-degree heat on Sunday.
Thankfully, AccuWeather meteorologists say the end of this record-breaking heat wave has come.
A storm advancing toward the West Coast on Monday will mark the arrival of a cooler pattern. Some much-needed rainfall will also return to Northern California and Oregon as the storm moves in.
As the storm comes ashore Monday afternoon and spreads showers over Northern California, temperatures will trend lower across the state. Many locations such as Sacramento, California, and Downtown Los Angeles are forecast to reach temperatures very close to average for this time of the year, in the 70s.
Related:
Even lower temperatures are expected for Tuesday before conditions plateau on Wednesday. By Tuesday, locations across the state of California will be around 20 degrees cooler than their hottest day of the past week.
Coastal communities dip into the upper 50s to lower 60s on Tuesday and Wednesday, while inland areas sag into the low to middle 70s. The typically hotter valley and desert locations will not miss out on the cooldown as temperatures are forecast to reach the upper 70s and upper 80s to low 90s respectively.
"The drop in temperatures is likely to make it easier for residents to find ways to more comfortably social distance outdoors amid the COVID-19 lockdown across the state," AccuWeather Meteorologist Courtney Travis said.
Those hoping for cooler conditions in the Desert Southwest will have to hold on a bit longer.
Cities like Phoenix will continue to flirt with triple-digit heat through Monday, before more seasonable temperatures in the lower 90s are forecast to arrive on Tuesday.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo