Millions of Americans in the Northeast are bracing for heat, which could help ignite scattered storms across the region and the Mid-Atlantic on Friday.
By the end of the week, millions of people are expected to experience the warmest temperatures all year across the East Coast.
As a warm, moist air mass moves over the Carolinas, the Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast, high temperatures will surge to around 10 to 15 degrees above average.
Along with the heat will come the threat of severe storms, as a weak dip in the jet stream across the Northeast migrates into the region, bringing increasing instability.
“During the peak heating hours of the day, with dew points climbing into the upper 60s, isolated storms capable of producing damaging wind gusts will be possible across New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, as well as southward into the Delmarva region,” the FOX Forecast Center said.
There is a Level 1 out of 5 severe storm threat in place extending from Richmond, Virginia, through Pittsburgh and into Upstate New York.
By Thursday and into Friday, forecasters are eying a Level 2 out of 5 severe storm threat across the Mid-Atlantic region and into the Hudson Valley.
Daytime heating, along with moisture, will allow for severe storms to develop, with the main threat being damaging wind gusts and the possibility of a brief tornado, according to the FOX Forecast Center.
“As southerly winds continue to pump record heat and high humidity into the region Friday afternoon, an approaching cold front will act as the focus for storm development,” the FOX Forecast Center said.
This threat includes popular locations such as Philadelphia, New York City, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
More than 50 million Americans will be under a Level 2 out of 5 severe storm risk.
With the lingering threat on big cities, prediction markets at Kalshi are expecting a 94% chance of over an inch of rain in New York City by the end of the month.
This comes as many New Yorkers have experienced a plethora of wet weather weekends so far this spring, with the official start of summer approaching.
The same prediction markets also expect a 50% chance of over 3 inches of rain in the Big Apple by the end of June.
Overall, as these storms move east, the primary threat will be rain, damaging winds, large hail and possibly a few tornadoes.
Stay tuned to FOX Weather as we continue to track the development of these potential storms.
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