Severe storms possible – NBC Boston

Heat and humidity have been relentless and record-breaking across New England over the past two days. Today brings more thunderstorms that will be more widespread and stronger than yesterday’s storms in northern New England. A cold front is slowly moving south while highs are in the 80s. Combined with the daytime heat and high humidity, we have the ingredients for an active evening.

A severe weather warning has been issued for parts of Vermont until 2 p.m. View all severe weather warnings for the region here and track conditions with our interactive radar.

The storms will begin to emerge in northern New England, then develop further as a broken line attempts to form around sunset. At this point, the storms will move across Massachusetts (west to east, generally along the Pike). Damaging wind and hail will be the main hazards and the reason we’re seeing severe thunderstorm warnings today, with heavy rain and lightning threatening with each storm.

Seek shelter in a building if you hear thunder. This means you are within lightning strike range and it’s time to get indoors to allow the storm to pass. If you can’t find a nearby building in time, your car is also a safer option. If you are caught on the water, head to shore immediately and seek shelter as well. Lightning can spread through the water and sudden gusts of wind can create monster waves that can sweep a kayaker or paddleboarder into the ocean.

The storms will continue to move south and east and will dissipate as they reach Cape Cod between 10 p.m. and midnight. Rain will continue overnight with temperatures around 70 degrees and a few thunderstorms ending in the Boston area around sunrise.

This brings us to the Celtics Championship Parade on Friday at 11 a.m. During the parade, temperatures will be above 20 degrees, humidity will be high, and it will be dry.

More thunderstorms and showers will break out around 2 p.m. as the cold front remains stationary above us. The thunderstorms and showers will spread quickly until 3 p.m. and then there will be a risk of lightning.

Severe storms should stay mostly west of Boston, but around Hartford where temperatures are higher. An easterly wind in Boston on Friday will keep some more stable air in place to avoid the strongest storm potential. Stay tuned to our NBC10 Boston First Alert Weather Team for more storm updates and your parade forecast!