BOSTON – Severe weather once again threatens millions in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic region for the third time in a week.
A cluster of thunderstorms that knocked out power to over 300,000 across the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes on Friday night will push eastward Saturday, putting a damper on the start of the weekend and bringing impactful weather to the northern I-95 corridor later in the day.
Warm, muggy air lingers in the Northeast early Saturday, but an approaching cold front will trigger rounds of thunderstorms stretching from Virginia to Massachusetts.
Showers and thunderstorms will first push across central Pennsylvania and upstate New York Saturday morning into the early afternoon, but thunderstorms will become more robust and likely to reach severe levels as they trek east toward the coast Saturday evening into early Saturday night.
NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center has placed some 50 million in the I-95 corridor under a Level 2 threat on their 5-point severe weather risk scale. That includes major cities like Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York City and Boston.
The greatest threat from these thunderstorms are damaging wind gusts to 60 mph, as we saw earlier in the Great Lakes. A low risk exists for large hail and a few isolated tornadoes can’t be ruled out in the New York to Boston corridor.
Once the cold front passes, much cooler weather will push into New England, giving the region and early taste of fall.
Temperatures will drop Ito the 60s and 70s across Maine and New Hampshire late Saturday and Sunday, with is a good 10 degrees below average.
Highs will drop to around 80 in the New York area Sunday and Monday, coming after spending two days in the 90s sweating under heat alerts.