Humidity, risk of storms to increase in Midwest and Northeast late this week

Following a stretch of dry weather, more humid air and the risk of showers and thunderstorms will spread from the Midwest to the Northeast into this weekend.

"The spell of unusually low temperatures and humidity levels for early August continued in the northeastern United States through Thursday," according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dave Dombek.

North to northeasterly breezes allowed cool, dry air to spread over a broad area of of the Midwest and Northeast.

As the core of the cool, dry air slides to the east, a southerly flow of more humid air will resume from west to east across the Midwest and Northeast into the weekend.

However, the rebound in temperatures may lag.

"We do not expect a return of heat any time soon," Dombek said.

"Temperatures may stay below average in some coastal areas, such as New York City, due to cloud cover and a breeze off the ocean."

Some areas well inland in the Northeast and over the Midwest, where the sun is out, may return to near average for a time.

The combination of increasing humidity levels and the approach of a storm system will bring an uptick of showers and thunderstorms.

The first storms erupted over the northern and central Plains on Wednesday.

The threat for localized severe weather will affect parts of the western Great Lakes, including the Chicago area into Thursday night.

Farther southwest, another pocket of locally severe storms will focus from eastern Colorado to southwestern Kansas and western and central Oklahoma.

The greatest risks from the southern Plains storms will be from high winds and hail that will transition to a flash flood risk by early Friday.

One of the severe storms on Thursday afternoon produced hail larger than grapefruits just west of WaKeeney, Kansas.

The risk of showers and thunderstorms will then progress eastward to end the week.

A few storms may reach parts of the Ohio Valley and central Appalachians on Thursday night, then perhaps the mid-Atlantic coast on Friday afternoon and evening.

Storms are likely to hold off until this weekend for much of New England.

"Even though the pattern will turn unsettled into this weekend, an all-day washout is unlikely," according to AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Elliot Abrams.

The storm moving in is not as strong as that which affected parts of the central U.S. last weekend and the mid-Atlantic coast on Monday.

While some of the thunderstorms will have the potential to become heavy and gusty at an isolated level, the storm system is unlikely to produce severe weather over a regional basis.

"Another dose of cool, dry air will sweep into the Midwest this weekend and part of the Northeast early next week," according to AccuWeather Lead Long-Range Meteorologist Paul Pastelok.

However, any reduction in humidity levels and drying in coastal areas of the Northeast may be limited or brief.

"There is the chance a tropical system, currently dubbed 99L, tracks close enough to cause this weekend's showers and thunderstorms to stall along the mid-Atlantic coast into next week," Pastelok said.

Interests along the U.S. Atlantic coast should monitor the progress of 99L, especially this weekend and into next week.

Report a Typo