Michigan residents should prepare for several days of dangerous heat, with heat index values exceeding 105 degrees in some areas this coming week, according to the National Weather Service.
Southeast Michigan is under an Extreme Heat Watch beginning 2 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, while much of the rest of the Lower Peninsula is under an Extreme Heat Warning starting Monday. Dangerously hot conditions will begin Monday before reaching their hottest temperatures Tuesday through Thursday, according to the weather service.
An Extreme Heat Warning is in effect from 2 p.m. Monday through 8 p.m. Thursday for much of western, central and southwest Lower Michigan, including Grand Rapids, Lansing, Kalamazoo, Jackson, Battle Creek, Muskegon, Holland and Benton Harbor, along with parts of southwest Michigan bordering Indiana.
The dangerous-to-record breaking heat will build across the center of the nation and slowly build eastward, the National Weather Service said.
In southeast Michigan, the heat watch beginning Tuesday is for Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Washtenaw, Monroe, Livingston, St. Clair, Genesee, Lapeer, Midland, Bay, Huron, Saginaw, Tuscola, Sanilac, Shiawassee and Lenawee counties. Heat and humidity will build up in the region on Monday with heat index values approaching or touching 100 degrees for a short period before Tuesday’s heat watch period.
There is a slight risk, according to the weather service, for severe thunderstorms in the Upper Midwest, including Michigan, on Monday.
“Heat related illnesses increase significantly during extreme heat and high humidity events,” said the weather service, warning of the effects of extreme heat.
Heat index values could reach 105 degrees in some parts of the state, while actual temperatures in southeast Michigan are forecast to climb into the upper 90s and could approach 100 degrees in Metro Detroit.
Little relief is expected overnight, according to the weather service.
“Overnight lows in the mid-70s will offer limited relief from the heat,” the weather service said. “Additionally, heat-related impacts may be heightened due to cooler than normal temperatures these past two weeks.”
Weather experts aren’t talking normal summer heat. The triple-digit heat indices and blazing hot temperatures could break records and linger through Independence Day and beyond, according to USA Today.
And it’s not just the Midwest. Temperatures are going to be “well above normal across much of the Central and Eastern U.S.,” said Frank Pereira, a meteorologist at the Weather Prediction Center, part of the National Weather Service.
From July 3-9, weather service forecasters are predicting temperatures well above-normal and possibly record-breaking summertime temperatures and elevated extreme heat risks for many areas in the Midwest and Eastern U.S.
Though uncertainty remains, the heat wave this weekend could expand and endure through at least Saturday, July 4.
The weather service urged residents to drink plenty of fluids, stay out of the sun, stay in air-conditioned buildings and check on relatives and neighbors.
The forecast
Monday: Mostly sunny; chance of thunderstorms; high 92, ow 74
Tuesday: Sunny; high 99, low 76
Wednesday: Sunny; high 100; low 76
Thursday: Sunny; high 100; low 76
cwilliams@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Lower Michigan braces for extreme heat wave this week
Reporting by Candice Williams, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Candice Williams, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
