Severe weather on Tuesday ramped up across the country as a dayslong stretch of storms began battering southern Florida, triple-digit temperatures threatened the Southwest and a half foot of rain soaked parts of Texas.
Storms expected to dump 10 inches of rain across part of South Florida began lashing the state on Tuesday, bringing torrential downpours to a part of the state that's experienced drought conditions and record breaking temperatures in recent weeks. In the morning, a large, slow-moving system began dumping heavy rain and strong winds over parts of southern Florida, leading to flight delays at airports across half the peninsula.
Officials grounded flights at Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport around 8:50 a.m. and at Tampa International Airport around 1 p.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Meanwhile, flights departing Miami International Airport were delayed by nearly two hours, and flights at Orlando International Airport were delayed by an average of 30 minutes, the FAA said.
By noon, between 2 and 3 inches of rain had fallen in parts of Lee and Collier counties on the southwest coast and an additional 2 to 4 inches was expected by the end of the day, triggering flood warnings for Naples, Fort Myers and other neighboring communities.
In northern Texas, the weather service issued warnings urging residents to stay updated on forecasts and to avoid driving through floodwaters. By 11 a.m., between 6 and 8 inches of rain had fallen in parts of Baylor, Foard and Knox counties, rural parts of the state over 100 miles northwest of Dallas.
Further south, more than than half an inch of rain had fallen in Abilene, a small city about 150 miles west of Fort Worth, and more than another inch is possible, the weather service said. The threats for Jones and Taylor counties, which encompass Abilene, includes "Life threatening flash flooding of creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses," the weather service said.
As storms dump heavy rain across Florida and Texas, a heat wave over the Southwest is expected to intensify through the afternoon, bringing scorching temperatures from California to Texas.
Southwest braces for more triple digit temperatures
Heat advisories spanning from California's Central Valley through Nevada and Arizona were set to begin around 11 a.m. and expire later in the week as the heat wave expands into the central and eastern U.S., bringing 90-degree weather to the Northeast by the weekend, according to the National Weather Service.
The weather service in Phoenix said afternoon temperatures between 105 and 113 were expected, warning, "Overexposure can cause heat cramps and heat exhaustion to develop and, without intervention, can lead to heat stroke."
In Las Vegas, temperatures could climb to 112 degrees on Tuesday and Wednesday, the weather service said. Last week, the city saw heat records broken on Thursday and Friday when the afternoon highs reached 111 and 110, respectively.
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The weather service office in Flagstaff, Arizona, said temperatures ranging from 104 to 112 were expected around the north rim of the Grand Canyon, warning hikers not to descend more than a mile and a half from the upper trailheads.
Meanwhile, dangerously high temperatures were forecast throughout much of California's interior. In the northern region of the state, the Sacramento Valley was under heat advisories, with afternoon highs expected to climb to 97 and 106 degrees. The weather service in Bakersfield, a city north of Los Angeles, said temperatures could reach 105 degrees.
"Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors," the weather service warned. "Do not leave young children and pets in unattended vehicles. Car interiors will reach lethal temperatures in a matter of minutes."
Many of the cities currently under heat advisories broke records last week. On Thursday, Phoenix reached 112 degrees, surpassing the previous daily record set in 2016. The high temperatures led 11 people at a Donald Trump rally to require medical attention from heat-related incidents. Record temperatures also were recorded across California, Texas and central Florida.
South, central Florida faces intense deluge this week, forecasters say
The weather service placed much of South Florida under flood watch, warning that multiple rounds of heavy rain could quickly lead to flooded roads and waterways above their flood table.
In the Florida Keys, rainfall totals could reach 2 to 3 inches by Wednesday evening, the weather service said. In the same time frame, 6 to 9 inches of rain is expected to fall across Southwest Florida and the Lake Okeechobee region, with 2 to 5 inches of rain forecast for Miami.
Later in the week, the heavy rain will reach Central Florida, bringing flood threats to cities including Orlando and Tampa Bay.
The rain comes as a relief to some, as central and southern Florida have been scorched byrecord-breaking heat in recent weeks. Triple digit temperatures set new daily temperature records in cities just outside Orlando, while Miami and Hollywood surpassed previous records in May.
