Hot For Now, But Some Relief May Be In Sight

From Meteorologist Brandon Rector...

I know I sound like a broken record, but it was another hot day here in the Big Country today. We once again reached the mid to upper 90s for highs across the area. A little bit of shower activity made it into the northwestern portions of the area. It was the leftovers from some thunderstorms that flared up in the panhandle near Amarillo and Lubbock. That looks to be the only way that we are going to see any rain through at least the end of the work week.

An upper level high pressure ridge will remain in control over the region through Friday. This means we should remain hot with highs around 100 for at least the next four days. Dry conditions are likely to continue too.

It looks like the ridge may finally break down by the weekend and early next week. This means we could see a slight cooling trend. Highs may only be in the low 90s. More moisture will likely be around, so partly cloudy skies are a possibility. What may also be possible according to some computer models is a shot at some rain. That is still six to seven days away, so that chance might not happen. For now, I'm going with a less than slight chance but may increase that as we get closer. Keep your fingers crossed because it has been a while since most of us have seen rain.

Tropical Storm Alberto continues to move closer to the Florida coastline. The 7 p.m. CDT advisory from the National Hurricane Center states that Alberto has sustained winds near 70 mph. This puts it just shy of hurricane status. At 74 mph it will be a category 1 hurricane. There is a possiblity of it becoming a hurricane before landfall. It is moving northeast at 8 mph, which means it should make landfall early on Tuesday if it continues at that pace. It is currently 120 miles south of Apalachicola, Florida. A hurricane warning is in effect from Longboat Key to the Ochlockonee River. It looks like 4 to 8 inches of rainfall with isolated higher amounts are possible. The storm surge looks to be about 8 to 10 feet. We'll continue to keep you updated with this first tropical system of the Atlantic hurricane season.

Have a terrific Tuesday!