New York Has Two More Days Under Broiler Before Relief Hits

(Bloomberg) -- New York faces two more days of oppressive heat and potentially severe thunderstorms before cooler air will sweep down from Canada to usher in a mild weekend.

Temperatures in Manhattan are forecast to be near 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) on Wednesday and Thursday, but intense humidity will make it feel closer to 95 degrees, according to the National Weather Center. Relief will arrive Friday.

“Thursday will be the last warm day,” said Bob Oravec, senior branch forecaster at the U.S. Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland. “A front will push southeast from Canada.”

Highs in New York Friday and Saturday will be in the 70s, with sunny skies. Until then, heat advisories are in effect for New York, western Long Island, Philadelphia and New Jersey. The combination of heat and humidity threatens to drive up wholesale electric prices as demand for air conditioning surges. As 8:50 a.m., the price for real-time electricity in New York City was up 75% from the same time Tuesday, to $29.90 a megawatt-hour.

There’s a slight chance of severe thunderstorms from New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania to New England, according to the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma.

As September approaches, cooler air will start to push down from Canada, Oravec said. There may still be flashes of heat, but the seasonal shift will be underway.

--With assistance from Christopher Martin.

To contact the reporter on this story: Brian K. Sullivan in Boston at bsullivan10@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Tina Davis at tinadavis@bloomberg.net, Joe Ryan, Joe Carroll

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