TAMPA, Fla — If you're outside Friday, you'll want to take it easy for yet another day.
High heat and humidity setting up over west-central Florida have triggered a second day of a heat advisory Friday afternoon for most of the Tampa Bay area.
Temperatures will once again climb to the mid to upper 90s. Add in the substantial low-level moisture present, and the air will feel even heavier and hotter.
The heat index, or apparent temperature, is what the temperature feels like to the human body when relative humidity is combined with the air temperature. On Friday, heat index values are expected to hit up to 110 degrees in some places.
This has triggered a heat advisory that is in effect from 2-6 p.m.
The combination of hot temperatures and high humidity will create a situation in which heat illnesses are possible. Today, people should:
- Stay hydrated
- Stay inside as much as possible; take frequent breaks
- Wear lightweight, lightly colored clothing
- Take it easy!
Be sure to check up on relatives, neighbors and the elderly. Young children and pets should never be left outside for long periods of time and unattended in vehicles under any circumstances. This is also the time to know the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion and heatstroke.
If you think you or someone you know may be experiencing heatstroke, call 911 immediately.
Climatologically speaking, a normal high in Tampa this time of year is around 91 degrees. While that's already hot enough, afternoon temperatures will climb well above that to the mid-upper 90s.
Some towns today may either touch or set a new daily high-temperature record.
Why the scorcher of a week? A heat dome set up over the Lower 48 is continuing to drive up the heat from Texas to Illinois to North Carolina, leading to excessive heat warnings and heat advisories from Nebraska to Virginia.
That sprawling area of high pressure is influencing the weather as far south as Florida. The sinking air under high pressure compresses and heats up. In this case, it is warming temperatures to near-record territory across a significant chunk of the country.
