Cooler weather returns through Friday

The cooler side of summer returns through Friday with highs in the 70s and chances of showers on Thursday and Thursday night. The weekend promises to bring a return to more typical summer weather with highs in the 80s and plenty of sun, according to National Weather Service forecasters. For today, mostly sunny skies should produce highs in the lower 70s. Breezes could gust to 18 mph from the southwest. On Thursday, another Pacific low pressure system swings across the area and brings clouds, winds and a chance of showers. Gusts could reach 26 mph out of the southwest. Lows will feel a bit on the chilly side, dropping to the lower 50s by Thursday night. Forecasters said the hot weather that has troubled the middle of the country will move slightly westward by Saturday, giving the region only a short taste of the heat before retreating to the east on Monday and Tuesday. At 7 a.m., it was 51 at Spokane International Airport, 54 at Felts Field and Coeur d’Alene, 51 in Deer Park and 53 in Pullman. The normal high for today in Spokane is 83.