The daytime temperatures in the Upper Ohio Valley the past two weeks have been well above-average, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Fred McMullen, and local residents should expect much the same during the next six weeks.
Hot. It’s going to be hot.
“There’s going to be some rain the area, a cold front is going to cool it down a little over this coming weekend, but that’s not going to last long because a little later next week the temperatures are going to kick back up into the 90’s, and that’s likely going to last the rest of the month of July,” McMullen reported. “It might not be above 90 every day, but the rest of the month we’ll have above normal temperatures and below average precipitation.
“We have seen heat waves in this area before in 2011, 1995, and then in 1988, and 1988 was when Pittsburgh had its highest-ever temperature of 104 degrees,” he said. “On that same day in Wheeling, it wasn’t that hot, but it was hot.”
OK, How Hot?
If the current forecast holds true, a new record will be recorded for consecutive 90-degree days, and, just like during a cold spell, relief is a constant request that will not be granted anytime soon.
Instead, swelter like it was 1918, the same year the last national pandemic took place and claimed many local lives.
“Our records for Wheeling are from 1881-2020, and the highest temperature for Wheeling was on August 7 back in 1918 at 104 degrees, and there has not been a 100 degree-temperature day in Wheeling since July 15, 1936,” McMullen said. “But it’s been close, and the high temperatures are going to remain in the high 80s and low 90s the rest of this month and in August.
“It has been hotter in this region than it has been across the Carolinas, and some weeks in June the temperatures were not very beach like,” he said. “But the south will warm up the next few weeks and stay that way for a while.”
The Grass is Dying
The creeks and streams are very low, and the Ohio River was flowing at less than 16 feet at Wheeling Tuesday evening, and those conditions have made it difficult for kayak and canoe enthusiasts along Big Wheeling Creek.
A chance of precipitation is predicted for each day the rest of the week, but the heat will remain to set a record.
“We did some research on the city of Wheeling, and it is usually 90 degrees or greater for at least five days per year, if not more,” McMullen explained. “As of Tuesday, at least 90 degrees has been reported at the Ohio County Airport, and the temperature is expected to reach into the 90s again (today) and two days after that.
“The last time we saw a stretch like this in Wheeling was back in 2016 when it was five days,” he said. “The fact that by now the ground is so dry that it is easier for the temperatures to reach into the 90’s. If it would have rained more the past week in that area, it would still be hot, but not as hot as it has been.”
