Scorching heat and hazy skies up north, storms possible over southern Utah

SALT LAKE CITY ( ABC4 ) – Happy Wednesday, Utah! Looks like we’re in for another round of sizzling temperatures and afternoon thunderstorms across the state.

The moisture keeps swirling around the dominant ridge, pushing those daytime highs into the upper 90s for the Wasatch Front, with some areas flirting with the 100-degree mark.

Salt Lake City is expected to hit 100º, which is above our average of 95° for this time of year. Down in southern Utah, the heat continues with a slight chance of isolated showers and thunderstorms, especially over the higher terrain.

Along with the heat, we’re also dealing with hazy conditions due to wildfire smoke drifting in from the Pacific Northwest, Northern California, and Idaho. This smoke raises particulate matter in the air, which can impact our air quality.

Coupled with the usual summer ozone, this mix is pushing the air quality to unhealthy levels for sensitive groups in many counties along the Wasatch Front from Box Elder south to Utah County. Moderate levels of particulate matter are expected to continue elsewhere.

High pressure remains the main player in our weather story, with the ridge slowly shifting westward this week. We can expect daily showers and thunderstorms across southern Utah and the higher terrain through the weekend and into next week.

By Thursday and Friday, more moisture will increase thunderstorm chances across almost the entire state with isolated thunderstorms expected along the Wasatch Front. The main concerns will be gusty winds and potential flash flooding, especially with strong storms in southern Utah.

As the ridge moves west, we’ll get some drier air from the north starting Saturday, reducing storm chances slightly. However, daytime highs will remain above average through early next week, with triple-digit heat persisting over the weekend.

Lower Washington County will feel the brunt of this excessive heat, with St. George potentially seeing lows around 80°, which has led to an excessive heat watch issued for that area Saturday morning through Sunday evening. Daytime highs will likely reach up to 111° with overnight lows in the 80s.

We’ll give you the latest updates in our 4Warn Weather forecast both on-air and online, we are Good4Utah!

• High heat takes over
• Hazy due to regional wildfire smoke
• Isolated thunderstorms, especially in the southern half of the state
• Moisture increases Thursday in northern Utah
• Flash flood risk remains elevated — possible today, probable on Thursday
• Gusty microburst winds are possible
• Ridge retrogrades this week
• Temperatures spike yet again this weekend, back to triple digits up north
• Excessive heat potential in southern Utah with no relief overnight
• Excessive heat watch for Lower Washington County.

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