New York Slogs Through Another 90-Degree Day, With More to Come

(Bloomberg) -- Hot, oppressive weather will smother New York City and much of the U.S. East Coast yet again Tuesday as a heat wave enters its fourth day, showing few signs of abating.

Highs are forecast to reach 93 degrees Fahrenheit (34 Celsius) in New York’s Central Park. Philadelphia will hit 95, and Washington will be 97, according to the National Weather Service. Humidity will make it feel even hotter.

Relief, of sorts, will come Friday, when highs in New York will reach 87, dropping below 90 for the first time in days. Saturday will be cooler at 84.

“The heat wave is going to be pretty persistent through the middle of the week,” said Matt Benz, a meteorologist with AccuWeather Inc.

With so many people working from home, the temperatures pushed electricity demand in New York above 10,000 megawatts, nearing the all-time record of just over 11,000 megawatts. Demand is forecast to exceed 9,000 megawatts each day this week.

As of Monday, temperatures in New York have been in the 90s seven times this year, one greater than the long-term average, according to the weather service. The average temperature has been 2.7 degrees above normal.

In New York, the respite from 90-degree temperatures will likely be short lived as more heat is forecast to drive east out of the Great Plains and Midwest next week, Benz said. Dry conditions across the central U.S. are helping sustain high temperatures, and that will likely continue through the middle of August.

As of July 16, nearly 73% of the High Plains were abnormally dry with almost all of Colorado suffering from a lack of moisture, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

“It is kind of cycle that is feeding off itself,” Benz said. “The drier it gets the hotter it gets, it is going to continue to build across the central U.S. and then push eastward to the mid-Atlantic. We’re stuck in this for the foreseeable future.”

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