Phoenix May Hit 114F This Week as Heat Bears Down on US West: Weather Watch
Excessive heat warnings and advisories for parts of California, Nevada, Arizona and Utah are on Bloomberg Green’s radar today.
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Record heat will sear California and the West through the rest of the week, causing energy demand to soar as people turn to air conditioning to cool down.
Hanford, California is forecast to reach 109F (43C) Thursday breaking the old record for the date by a degree, said Marc Chenard, a senior branch forecaster with the US Weather Prediction Center. Las Vegas may reach 112 and Phoenix 114, both records as well.
“Thursday is the warmest day,” Chenard said. “Next week is not as hot but it is still above average. Just not to the level that we are seeing here for the next couple of days.”
Excessive heat warnings and advisories spread across California’s Central Valley and southern deserts extending into Nevada, Arizona and Utah. High temperatures are also forecast for parts of New Mexico and southern Texas.
“Widespread major heat, highly unusual for early June, will expand across most of the Western US in coming days (minus some coastal areas),’’ Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles said in post on X.
In addition to the US, hot weather continues in Mexico with readings reaching 113F (45C) across eastern and northern parts of the country, according to its weather service.
High pressure has settled across the western US and North America and this typically allows temperatures to soar, Chenard said. When the heat bears down, residents will turn to air conditioning and that in turn puts pressure on electric grids and energy prices.