Strong-Severe Thunderstorms Very Likely Late This Afternoon & Evening Across Western & Central Mass

Very hot and humid weather is expected to continue throughout this afternoon with temperatures reaching the middle 90s and heat index numbers of up to 105 Degrees. Strong to severe thunderstorms are currently occurring over parts of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. These storms are expected to push southeastward over the next few hours and reach Western and Central Mass by very late this afternoon. These thunderstorms will bump into a very hot, very humid and very unstable air mass and thus these storms are likely to remain strong to severe as they push through during the very late afternoon and evening hours of today. It looks like strong to severe thunderstorms will push southeastward across Western and Central Mass beginning around 4 to 5 pm or so this afternoon and then continue well into this evening. I expect that these storms will move out of our area close to midnight tonight. The main threat from any severe thunderstorms will be strong wind gusts of up to 55 to 70 mph. In addition, given the very humid air, extremely heavy rainfall with the potential for localized flash flooding will also be a threat. Finally, frequent lightning is expected with most of the thunderstorms late this afternoon and this evening. I am monitoring the weather extremely closely and will have additional updates as needed.