The heat wave that has claimed lives in Texas has moved into the Deep South, where temperatures could feel like 120 degrees in some places this weekend.
The deaths of more than 10 people in the Lone Star State have been attributed to the excessive heat that has baked the southern U.S. for more than two weeks. On Friday, the heart of the high-pressure system responsible for the unusual early summer warmth moved east.
Heat alerts cover about 70 million Americans from far eastern Texas to Georgia and from Tennessee to Florida. Excessive Heat Warnings – the worst type of heat alert – are concentrated along the Mississippi River and into western Alabama.
Temperatures will run nearly 10 degrees above average in some places Saturday and are forecast to be at or near 100 degrees across the region. Heat index readings, commonly called feels-like temperatures, will easily range between 105 and 120 degrees.
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While the weekend appears to be a furnace for the Deep South, the heat dome is expected to shrink by Monday as a cold front gnaws at it from the north. With the front in the vicinity, chances of rain increase as Independence Day approaches.
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While the southern U.S. may get a respite from the scorching weather, the Climate Prediction Center believes above-average temperatures are likely to reappear across the region by mid-July.