With one day left in the month, Harrisburg and some other cities in southcentral Pa. are on track to have their hottest July on record, according to the National Weather Service.
In Harrisburg, the average temperature for July is sitting at 82.2 degrees, while the current record average is 81.8 degrees, according to National Weather Service Meteorologist Steve Travis. That was set in 1999.
“We would need a pretty chilly day to happen tomorrow,” Travis said of what could prevent the record.
Looking around the region, Travis said many areas are expected to have average temperatures in either the top 10, if not top 5 hottest on record. Williamsport is currently sitting at the third hottest July on record and Bradford will likely also have its hottest July ever.
The official numbers won’t be determined until Saturday when the month is over and they can properly look at all the data, Travis said. But as it stands, there’s a “really good chance” Harrisburg will establish a new mark.
Looking ahead, Travis said the start of August should actually be a break from all the heat with a few storm systems moving through.
Temperature highs will be in the 80s instead of the 90s, he said, and rain if not thunderstorms are expected Thursday into Friday and Sunday into Monday.
Travis said next week, it does appear that Tropical Storm Isaias might come up the East Coast toward Pennsylvania, Travis said. It is still unclear how that will affect the central part of the state.