hot, humid, air quality warning – NBC New York

It will continue to be hot in the New York City area on Wednesday, and the heat will not let up for the next few days—plus there will be an air quality warning in effect today.

This air quality warning is in effect until 11 p.m. Wednesday for NYC, Westchester, Rockland, Orange, and Putnam counties in New York, Bergen, Passaic, Hudson, Essex, and Union counties in New Jersey, and Fairfield, New Haven, and Northern Middlesex in Connecticut. The warning warns that air quality could reach levels that are unhealthy for sensitive groups.

Heat advisories went into effect Tuesday for most of the region, except for New York City, Long Island, and coastal New Jersey and Connecticut (but don’t worry, it’ll still be hot enough there, too). While the city may not quite see a heat wave, Wednesday marked the third straight day of 90-degree heat or higher in Newark, making it an official heat wave in parts of the tri-state area.

Heat indices above 95 degrees are expected inland for the rest of the week. Temperatures are expected to continue to rise and overnight lows will also rise, meaning there is little chance of an overnight cooldown in sight.

The heat will continue to increase. The hottest days are expected to be Thursday and Friday, when maximum temperatures will exceed 35 degrees. Temperatures will drop again somewhat over the weekend, but no real relief is expected in the near future.

Latest forecast from Storm Team 4

The warm, humid weather will be extremely dangerous – not only because of the higher temperatures and humidity, but also because of the cumulative effect and lack of relief overnight. There is a possibility that some areas in the tri-state area could reach record high temperatures overnight.

An extreme heat warning is in place for parts of New Jersey on Thursday and Friday as the heat index is expected to rise to 105 degrees.

The chance of thunderstorms increases Friday afternoon and evening and will continue through early next week.

There is a risk of storms this week

Storm chances increase Wednesday and Thursday, with isolated showers possible far north of New York City in Sullivan, Ulster and Dutchess counties.

Friday’s forecast high of 94 degrees would come close to the daily record for Central Park, but will likely be a few degrees lower. The all-time record for the month of June (in Central Park) is 101 degrees.

Rain chances on Friday will decrease and continue Saturday night through Monday. Instead of alleviating the heat, thunderstorms could actually increase the humidity outside.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul is activating the National Guard to help people in the heat. The MTA said heat patrols are being deployed to inspect train tracks and keep services running. In New Jersey, some schools are closing early for the rest of the week because of the scorching temperatures.

The heat will ease a bit over the weekend, at least on Saturday, but it will remain very warm and humid across the region. In fact, Sunday could be just as bad as Friday in terms of the dangerous combination of heat and humidity. We expect a brief respite in temperatures and humidity by Tuesday.

The heat will be short-lived. After the weekend, temperatures will stay above 30 degrees and reach almost 30 degrees again by mid-week, so make sure the air conditioning is running well. Unfortunately, there is no long-term relief in sight for June.

Jessica Cunnington with the details for NBC New York.