July says goodbye with another high-end flood risk

As the latest heat wave ends in much of the eastern half of the nation, it delivers a taste of cooler and drier air — plus some wildfire smoke from the north. With July now behind us, it’s fairly safe to say many have seen the worst heat summer will offer. Now, if the flood risks would also take a hike …

Weather watch

More flooding. July is going out in typical July 2025 style, with more flooding. A Level 3 out of 4 flood risk stretches from the D.C. area through Philadelphia and to around New York City. “Many individual convective models show localized totals surpassing 5 inches with even some localized maxima approaching 8 inches,” noted the Weather Prediction Center.

Pacific storm train. Hawaii’s southern beaches are under surf advisory as former Hurricane Iona and other systems pass well to its south. In addition to waves around 10 to 14 feet, gusts of 30-40 mph are expected to whip up a fire threat. To the east, Gil formed as well, with another disturbance on its heels.

Lightning links

Tropics shows signs of percolating to life in Atlantic Basin as calendar flips to August. (Scott Sistek, Fox Weather)

Eastern U.S. heat wave ending

A cold front stretched from the southern Plains to New England on Thursday is putting an end to the extreme heat in the east while sparking the previously mentioned flood threat.

Lots of places reached seasonal highs over the past week.

Some include:

• Atlanta at 100 on Tuesday (hottest since 2012)

• Dallas at 101 on Wednesday

• Detroit at 95 last Thursday

• Jacksonville at 101 on Tuesday

• Kansas City downtown at 99 on Tuesday

• New Orleans at 98 on Tuesday

• Tampa at 100 on Sunday (hottest on record)

In the wake of heat, temperatures are running about 10 degrees below average behind the cold front. A new round of Canada wildfire smoke is also invading the Great Lakes region.

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Weekday morning newsletter by a journalist/forecaster. Connecting weather and climate change dots while occasionally stirring the pot.

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