Lucian Huddleson, 2, of Maineville leaps over a wave at Kings Island's new Soak City waterpark. The Enquirer/Rachel Richardson
Jennifer Edwards Baker reports:
Today would be a good one to take the kids to Kings Island, do yard work or go on a leisurely walk along the Purple People Bridge across the Ohio River.
Weatherwise, it will be another gorgeous day with plenty of sun, low humidity and a high temperature of 81 degrees.
It’s 61 degrees this morning at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport.
Get out and enjoy it while it lasts. The mercury starts to climb in a big way Wednesday with a high of 88 degrees, and near-record heat will arrive by week’s end.
By Thursday, we’ll have a high of 101 degrees, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington.
That’s just one degree shy of the record of 102 degrees in 1944.
On Friday, the high will soar to 98. The record temperature on that date is 100, set in both 1944 and 1934.
The scorching forecast is courtesy of a high pressure system from the west combined with dry soils due to the current early drought conditions across Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, said Steve Rhebenach.
It is unusual to have such hot temperatures so early in the summer season, he said. The last time the region saw such blistering heat was early September. The mercury skyrocketed to 99 degrees on Sept. 2 and then to 100 degrees on Sept. 3.
“It’s not a normal occurrence, but it’s not something that’s unprecedented,” he said.
The tropical forecast does not, alas, bring any much-needed rain over the next several days, not even from Tropical Debby, which is expected to flood parts of Florida and Georgia this week.
The National Weather Service has also issued a special weather statement warning that the hot, dry and windy conditions could lead to wildfires. The elevated fire danger is expected to last for several days.
Thursday will have the highest fire danger because the relative humidity will be the lowest and wind gusts of 15 to 20 miles per hour are expected, the weather service said.
