Important Reminder: Excessive heat causes many injuries and deaths. Remember to stay hydrated, stay out of the sun and in a sufficiently cool place during the hottest hours of the day, and NEVER practice behaviors that could lead to starting fires. Staying safe and responsible can save your life and the lives of others!
Wildfires in the Cascades will bring degraded air quality to parts of Eastern Washington and Cascade valleys for the next few days. Remember to stay inside and in clean air during smoke events. Check air quality across Washington HERE.
FastCast—Wednesday, Aug. 16 to Saturday, Aug. 19:
The long-duration heat wave will continue through Thursday for the lowlands (longer for Eastern WA). Overnight lows by Wednesday morning will be quite warm, only dropping to the mid to upper 60s. On Wednesday, expect lowland highs in the low to mid 90s. Areas from Everett northward will be in the upper 80s to low 90s, except cooler close to the water, a trend all across the lowlands. The Kitsap Peninsula and areas from Olympia south and west will likely hit the mid to upper 90s again. Thursday will bring some cooling, but not much. Morning lows will remain in the mid to upper 60s, warmest in urban areas. Thursday’s highs will be in the upper 80s to low 90s in the lowlands, with noticeable relief due to marine air around Olympia and Shelton, with highs dropping to the mid 80s. Marine air will move into the region from late Thursday through Friday, with overnight lows dropping to the upper 50s to low 60s. Friday’s highs will plummet to the mid to upper 70s, with some locations reaching the low 80s. There will also be some morning clouds on Friday. By Saturday morning, temperatures will be downright refreshing, with lows dropping to the low to mid 50s! Saturday is looking sunnier, with highs again in the mid 70s to low 80s. However, before we get there, we have two more days of excessive heat to get through. Continue reading below for important forecast updates.
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Continue reading the full blog below!
A significant heat wave continues to impact the Pacific Northwest. Temperatures have reached the 90s in Seattle and well over 100º in the Willamette Valley and Eastern Washington. Similar heat will continue over the coming days, but relief is in sight! Let’s take a look at the forecast.
First, the European model forecast for highs on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, expect lowland highs in the low to mid 90s (cooler near the water). Areas from Everett north will reach the upper 80s to low 90s. The Kitsap Peninsula, Shelton area, and areas from Olympia south will hit the mid to upper 90s. The Willamette Valley will reach the upper 90s to low 100s, and Eastern Washington will be sweltering, with a second straight day in the low 100s to low 110s. Meanwhile, relief is coming, as coastal highs are down to the mid 70s, except in the mid 60s to low 70s at the beaches.
Next, let’s look at Thursday’s highs, also from the European model. Some change is noticeable.
On Thursday, expect lowland highs in the upper 80s to low 90s, except cooler near the water. In Shelton and Olympia, marine air moving through the Chehalis Gap will cool highs to the mid 80s. The Willamette Valley will cool slightly to the mid 90s, but Eastern Washington will remain quite hot, in the upper 90s to upper 100s, potentially the low 110s. The coast will continue to cool, with highs in the upper 60s to low 70s, except in the mid to upper 60s at the beaches.
By Friday, major heat relief will arrive in the lowlands in the form of refreshing marine air. Below is the European model forecast for Friday’s highs.
Huge relief is expected, mainly west of the Cascades. Lowland highs will reach the mid to upper 70s, with isolated areas reaching the low 80s. The Willamette Valley will reach the low to mid 80s, and the coast will reach the low to mid 60s. Eastern Washington will cool to the upper 80s to upper 90s.
The remaining hot days on Wednesday and Thursday will be exacerbated by more very warm nights. Below is the European model forecast for lows overnight Tuesday into Wednesday.
Overnight Tuesday into Wednesday, expect lows in the lowlands to only reach the mid to upper 60s, with similar lows in the Willamette Valley. Eastern Washington will remain quite warm, with lows in the low 70s to near 80º. The coast will cool to the mid 50s to low 60s.
Next, the lows for overnight Wednesday into Thursday, seen in the European model forecast below.
Overnight Wednesday into Thursday, expect lows in the lowlands and Willamette Valley to remain in the mid to upper 60s. Eastern Washington will remain in the low 70s to low 80s. The coast will stay in the mid 50s to low 60s.
However, the very warm overnight temperatures in the lowlands come to an end overnight Thursday into Friday, as seen in the European model forecast below.
Overnight Thursday into Friday, expect lows to drop to the upper 50s to low 60s in the lowlands and Willamette Valley, a huge relief though still on the warmer side. On the coast, lows will drop to the mid 50s to low 60s. Eastern Washington’s lows will have virtually zero change, still in the upper 60s to upper 70s.
To round out the blog, let’s take a look at the upcoming forecasts in Seattle, Olympia, and Pasco, from the EPS (European model ensemble forecast).
First, the Seattle forecast from the EPS, seen below.
This forecast shows hot weather on Tuesday (though this forecast underdid the Seattle high by 5º). Hot conditions continue on Wednesday and Thursday, before a significant shift to seasonable conditions by Friday. Note the solid red and blue lines on the graphs, which denote average highs and lows. Though more seasonable, we will remain above average for most of the foreseeable future.
Next, the EPS forecast for Olympia.
Notice that Olympia’s highs are warmer than Seattle, due to a lesser influence from Puget Sound. The story is similar, with heat on Tuesday (that was also a few degrees too low), another hot day on Wednesday, and then the start of a cooldown by Thursday (note Olympia is slightly cooler than Seattle on Thursday, due to being more exposed to incoming marine air from the ocean). Temperatures will cool by Friday but will remain mostly above average for the foreseeable future.
Finally, a look at the EPS forecast for Pasco, which tells a similar, but much hotter, story.
Conditions will remain in the mid 100s through Thursday, with temperatures dropping below 90º briefly before potentially increasing again later next week. Temperatures will be briefly below average through the weekend and early next week, before increasing back to above average again later next week.
This forecast graphic is very helpful and will become a frequent fixture of the blog, with the wealth of information on them. If you’d like a specific post explaining how to interpret these graphics, feel free to comment below!
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