Triple digit temps on the way after Fourth
Tim Vogt, 16, of Spokane takes a long leap into Lake Coeur d'Alene from a height of more than 20 feet. Forecasters say this week is going to be hot hot HOT. (Jesse Tinsley / The Spokesman-Review)Buy a print of this photo
Fourth of July temperatures this year are going to seem downright pleasant compared with the searing heat expected later this week.
High temperatures near or above 100 degrees are headed this way.
Independence Day is still expected to be very warm with a high of 89 in Spokane and 86 in Coeur d’Alene. Some wildfire smoke from southeast Washington may drift into Spokane on Tuesday morning.
A weak cold front on Monday was going to help keep the hot air at bay for just a day or so.
Then a shift in the weather pattern will allow high pressure to build over the region and open the door to bringing hot air north from the deserts of the Southwest U.S.
A high of 94 is expected on Wednesday.
“It is going to be around 100 on Thursday through Saturday,” said forecaster Laurie Nisbet of the National Weather Service.
She said Spokane International Airport should see 98 on Thursday, 101 on Friday and 99 on Saturday.
Downtown Spokane could be even hotter by a few degrees.
Going to the lake may provide only a little relief. Coeur d’Alene is expected to see 90 on Wednesday, 95 on Thursday and 97 on Friday.
Temperatures are likely to moderate on Sunday with highs of 88 in Spokane and 85 in Coeur d’Alene.
Nisbet said she thinks that Sunday’s highs might still be in the 90s.
The State Department of Ecology announced Monday that it was raising the fire danger rating in Eastern Washington from moderate to high, effective Wednesday. For anyone planning a to visit nature this week, campfires will be permitted in designated campgrounds only.
Over the past decade, July Fourth has seen 90-degree heat in just two years – 2009 and 2015.
The U.S. Climate Prediction Center is calling for weather in the Inland Northwest to be hotter and drier than normal from July 10 through 16.
The average Spokane high in early July is 79 degrees.
Spokane almost had triple-digit heat in early July 2015 when the high peaked at 99 on July 3.