Record East Heat Wednesday; Taste of Fall Arrives Thursday

Record heat had the East Coast in a mid-summer-like sizzle on Wednesday, but temperatures closer to normal for mid-September will move in for Thursday and into the upcoming weekend.

From Bridgeport, Connecticut to Washington, D.C. and several locations in between, records and mid-July-like temperatures were the norm on Wednesday afternoon, running well above seasonable averages for mid-September. New York City (91°) and Boston (90°) came close to records as well on Wednesday.

Offshore high pressure parked in the western Atlantic Ocean drew up unseasonably mild air from the south, but the mid-summer-like air is already gone. A cold front blasted through the region late on Wednesday, triggering strong showers and thunderstorms that led to severe thunderstorm warnings in and around New York City during the early evening hours. The front will bring temperatures in the 70s to perhaps around 80° for highs on Thursday and Friday, a far cry from the early week sizzle that ultimately ended with Wednesday’s record-setting highs.

Temperatures mostly stay around seasonable levels for this time of year through the weekend across the Northeast, but a return to unusually mild temperatures looks to be in the offing for next week as summer keeps a strong grip on the Northeast.

For WeatherNation: Meteorologist Chris Bianchi