SEATTLE — For the second day in a row, Seattle has broken a heat record.
The temperature at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport reached 86 degrees Friday, breaking the old record of 80 degrees set in 1993, according to meteorologists with the National Weather Service.
The high on Thursday was recorded at 83 degrees, surpassing the previous record high of 81 degrees set in 1987.
“There is a moderate risk for people sensitive to heat across a portion of western Washington,” the weather service’s Seattle office tweeted Friday morning. “Stay hydrated!”
The wave of warm weather is due to an offshore flow bringing heat from the interior of the North American land mass to the Puget Sound, according to weather service meteorologist Dana Felton.
In addition, this is the third time in 75 years that it hasn’t rained in the first 10 days of May, setting the stage for increased risk of drought and an early and devastating wildfire season, according to the weather service and the state Department of Natural Resources.
Saturday was expected to be another warm day, Felton said, though coastal regions were expected to see a change as air currents shift and an onshore marine breeze heads inland.
That marine air is likely to reach the interior Puget Sound today, dropping temperatures into the mid- to lower 70s, he said.
“It will still be warmer than normal, but it will be 10 to 15 degrees cooler on Sunday and Monday” than on Saturday, he said.
By late Tuesday, or on Wednesday, forecasters are expecting a cooler and wetter stretch that’s likely to extend into the following weekend.
“There will definitely be some wet areas Thursday through Sunday,” Felton said.
Despite the expected precipitation, and despite April rainfall that was slightly above average, the region finished up the water year about 3 inches below normal.
