Summer temperatures continue until Saturday before seasonal temperatures return

Summer temperatures will last until Saturday before the season picks up again

We FINALLY got some much needed rain on Thursday as several showers and thunderstorms moved through the area. The highest rainfall amounts fell southeast of Eau Claire, Red Wing and Ladysmith – where rainfall amounts ranged from 1/2 to 2 inches.

We watched the second round closely as it presented a severe weather threat, but it stayed further west along the Minnesota-Wisconsin border. A large part of the reason we didn't see much severe weather east of that is due to the rain that formed and stabilized the atmosphere. Some hail was reported in Polk County and some trees were downed near Hudson. Other than that, we didn't see any severe weather in our area.

The other story lately has been the warmth. The calendar may say September, but it feels more like July lately, with highs above 27 degrees on 10 of the last 11 days. The only day during that time that it wasn't above 27 degrees warmer was the 14th, but even that day wasn't far off.

Meteogram Future Past Temperature Trend -- Daybreak.png

Friday will begin with clouds and in places dense to thick fog. As soon as this has cleared, the sky will be sunny. Maximum temperatures will reach 25 to 27 degrees Celsius, and the dew points will fall back to 10 degrees Celsius thanks to a breeze from the west.

Tonight, a few clouds will move in and apart from one or two brief showers, it will remain dry. A cold front will bring the possibility of isolated showers and a few thunderstorms again in the afternoon and evening (3-10 p.m.).

The Storm Prediction Center is indicating a slight risk (level one out of five) for one or two isolated strong to severe storms in the southwestern part of the area. This includes Eau Claire, Menomonie, Hudson, Durand, Red Wing and Galesville. The greatest danger would be an isolated wind gust up to 60 mph.

We still expect a decent cooling to take place behind this cold front, with highs dropping back to 15 degrees Celsius. Rain chances are now below the light category, although an isolated drizzle or shower cannot be completely ruled out.

Towards the middle or end of next week, everything indicates that it will be drier again and temperatures will rise again, but I don't expect temperatures above 27 degrees in the forecast.