The two weather headlines of the week continue to dominate our local forecast: heat and Tropical Storm Bertha. What was Tropical Depression Two this time yesterday, strengthened into Tropical Storm Bertha last night. Bertha will continue moving west along the northern Gulf Coast, towards Texas. The impacts from Bertha in East Texas will be minimal. That said, a few showers and isolated thunderstorms will be possible later this week thanks to Bertha. That chance for rain will be the only relief from the other "headline" of the week, the heat. High temperatures climbed into the 100s for many locations across East Texas this afternoon for the first time this year. We'll likely see even more triple digit readings tomorrow. A weak front moving through the area will help to lower the humidity and temps some, but it will not be a significant cooldown by any means. Highs look to remain in the upper 90s and 100s through the end of July. The Climate Prediction Center is warning of a "High Risk" for excessive/extreme heat into early August for all of East Texas.
Today in history... On July 21, 1987, a massive F4 struck in northwestern Wyoming. The 1.5-mile wide wedge occurred at an elevation of >8000 ft, making this event the highest altitude violent tornado in US history. Around a million trees were snapped, uprooted, or debarked/denuded. The daily weather history segments come to us courtesy of the Southeast Regional Climate Center.
Also on today's show, updates on severe weather and summer heat that continue across the country. Finally, our satellite imagery of the day showing Tropical Storm Bertha from space, courtesy of the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere.
