7/18- Severe Weather Today

Good Monday all-

There is a MARGINAL RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER for all of Connecticut, except far northern Litchfield County, where there is a SLIGHT risk, the next step up.

Today is going to be a pretty miserable and nasty day, with hot and humid weather, followed by strong to severe storms later tonight. These storms could include strong gusty winds...large hail...and tornadoes...so be safe this afternoon and keep your eyes to the skies. Of those three risks, I would believe the strong winds are the biggest threat today, but since I cannot rule the other two out, don't be caught off guard if you are impacted by one of the others. As for temperatures, we are heading to the mid-90s today, with an average of around 93 for most of the state, which will provide fuel for the thunderstorms as a cold front approaches from our west.

By tomorrow, the weather will really cool off by ten degrees, where we drop to the 80s, and greatly reduce the humidity. Of the next 7 days, my pick would be Wednesday, which will feature low 80s and very little mugginess- a rare feat for this time of year. Thursday and Friday will be dry, but resume our 90 degree temperature string. The next chance of precipitation comes on Saturday with some thunderstorms possible, an idea that will be duplicated on Sunday.

No development is expected in the Atlantic anytime soon, and Hurricane Darby has weakened to a category 1 hurricane this weekend, and further weakening is expected. However, Tropical Storm Estelle formed over the weekend and is nearing hurricane intensity, which it will likely achieve later this afternoon. Additionally, a low off the Mexican coast will probably become Tropical Storm Frank this week at some point, and another low has at least some risk of development in the coming days. With this string of storms...we are now just three storms away from the all-time July record for the most named storms in the Pacific...and we have a chance of getting another one or two this week. It could be very close!

Today in weather history- July 18, 1986- A tornado north of Minneapolis stays photogenic for some 30 minutes, and is captured and aired on live TV by the local news. The twister is eventually deemed to have been an F2, featuring winds of about 120mph. Here is a link to that video...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SphbqvD7qSQ