Local residents should stay inside and drink as much water as possible Thursday and the weekend as incredibly hot and humid weather hits, advised National Weather Service Meteorologist Lenore Correia.
“Be sure not to be outside too long, because you could get heat exhaustion pretty quickly with these temperatures,” Correia said.
Today in Northampton, Correia said temperatures will reach into the mid 90s, with a heat index above 100 degrees.
A heat advisory is in effect from noon today until 7 p.m., and the high will be 95 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
Into Friday and the weekend, there will be a varying chances of rain, but it will only be “ever so slightly cooler,” Correia said. Friday will see highs in the low 90s rather than the mid 90s, and Saturday’s temperatures will reach back up to where they’ll be Thursday.
Chances for rain are 50 percent Friday, 80 percent Saturday and 40 percent Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.
“Humidity will remain pretty high, especially since there’s going to be showers both days,” said Correia, who noted that humidity would reach nearly 100 percent for the weekend.
“Stay inside as much as possible,” she said.
There’s a low risk of thunderstorms over the weekend, Correia said, but they are still possible. Showers are expected to continue from Friday through Tuesday, and temperatures are expected to go down next week, settling in the mid 80s.