DELMARVA -Â Canadian wildfire smoke will persist across Delmarva today, creating hazy skies, reducing visibility and potentially causing unhealthy air quality as temperatures climb into the 80s to around 90 degrees.
Heat index values are expected to reach the mid to upper 90s across much of the peninsula. Thick smoke could filter some sunlight and prevent temperatures from reaching their full potential, but conditions will remain quite warm and humid.
An Air Quality Alert continues until midnight tonight, due to the healthy conditions with the smoke. This episode is not expected to reach the severity of the widespread smoke event experienced in June 2023. However, residents will smell smoke at times, and air quality could become unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Exposure to smoke and ground-level ozone can cause headaches, fatigue, irritated eyes and sinuses, throat irritation, coughing and difficulty breathing. Children, older adults, people with asthma and those with compromised immune systems should limit strenuous outdoor activity and spend more time in air-conditioned indoor spaces when air quality deteriorates.
Saturday is expected to be the most active day of the weekend. Multiple rounds of thunderstorms could cross Delmarva from the morning through Saturday night, with the greatest severe weather threat during the afternoon and evening.
Delmarva is under a slight risk, Level 2 out of 5, for severe storms Saturday. Damaging wind gusts will be the primary concern, although frequent lightning and localized severe weather will also be possible.
Atmospheric moisture will rise to unusually high levels, allowing storms to produce intense rainfall. Repeated thunderstorms over the same locations could lead to flash flooding, especially in urban areas, low-lying communities and places with poor drainage.
A cold front should move across the peninsula Saturday night into early Sunday. A few showers and thunderstorms could continue during the first part of Sunday before skies gradually clear from northwest to southeast later in the day.
High pressure should bring quieter weather to Delmarva Monday before another frontal system potentially returns with showers and thunderstorms Tuesday or Wednesday.
