DENVER – Denver and other parts of northeastern Colorado could see record-breaking heat this weekend as temperatures near 100 degrees after a week of thunderstorms and ahead of a cold front early next week.
There is a marginal risk of thunderstorms packing winds up to 60 mph on the eastern plains on Friday following severe thunderstorms on both Wednesday and Thursday. There is also an air quality alert in effect for the Denver metro area up through Larimer and Weld counties.
But a high pressure system will be in place over the West this weekend that will push out most moisture in Colorado and raise temperatures to the upper-90s along the Front Range and eastern plains, with temperatures in the 80s in the mountains, according to the National Weather Service in Boulder.
The NWS says Denver’s record highs for both Saturday (98, set in 2021) and Sunday (102, set in 2016) are in jeopardy. On Friday afternoon, the NWS issued a heat advisory Saturday from 10 a.m. through 8 p.m. for the northeast quadrant of the state, prompting the City of Denver to announce the opening of several cooling centers for residents who may need them.
“Looking at the experimental Heat Risk there are some areas in the high category on the plains Saturday, with more widespread high impacts on Sunday,” NWS Boulder forecasters wrote Friday morning. “If this trend continues expect we’ll issue a heat advisory at least for Sunday but still too early to hoist at this point.”
Denver International Airport received 0.32 inches of rain on Thursday, pushing the city above normal precipitation so far for the month, at 0.5 inches compared to 0.41 inches normally so far in July.
But Denver is still more than an inch below normal for precipitation so far this year, at 6.62 inches compared to 7.89 normally.
Temperatures in Denver so far in July are slightly above normal for both daily maximum and minimum temperatures. The average temperature so far this month is 75.6 degrees, compared to a normal of 73.7 degrees.
Drought in Colorado was relatively unchanged over the past week, with a tiny percentage of the state moving from moderate drought to abnormally dry conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Still, nearly 99% of the state is at least abnormally dry and 83% of Colorado is seeing moderate or worse drought conditions – particularly in the northeastern, southeastern, and southwestern corners of the state.
Because of the heat, the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment is warning people to stay cool and stay inside when necessary this weekend as temperatures near 100 degrees.
The DDPHE suggests people stay inside air-conditioned buildings as much as possible, stay hydrated and drink more water than usual, not to leave pets and children inside cars and to avoid excess exercise outside in the hottest hours of the day.
But after the hot weekend, we’ll see some relief on Monday, as a cold front moves through northeastern Colorado Sunday night and chances of rain and thunderstorms persist into Tuesday, along with high temperatures in the 80s.
But on the back half of next week, northeastern Colorado is looking at another heat wave, with triple digits possible by next Thursday, according to the NWS.
Stay with Denver7 and the Denver7 weather team for the latest weather and heat updates through the weekend. You can also get the latest forecast and current conditions on the 24/7 weather streaming channel on the free Denver7+ app.
