WEATHER: Heat returning to region to open the final week of July

Temperatures are back on the rise after a weekend of muggy weather and downpours as the dog days of summer are back in force for Northwest Georgia.

The thermometer will still technically be in the upper 80s and low 90s for the upcoming week, but the heat index is where the real pain is coming into play for the forecast as the week opens with a heat index in the mid-100s for the more southern counties in the region.

Cedartown, for instance, is expecting a Monday heat index up to 106, up to 102 in Ringgold and 100 in Dalton. The region as a whole is expecting actual highs up into the low to mid 90s mark. Slight chances of showers will remain in the forecast for the day, but they are no more than a 20% prediction posted by meteorologists in Peachtree City.

The heat wave that started building up this afternoon won’t last much past Tuesday, but heat indexes will get back up into the upper reaches of the 100s again.

Highs are expected to dip down back into the mid to upper 80s and low 90s through Wednesday and into the coming start of August.

Sunshine will dominate the days ahead as clear skies are expected, and heat indexes will get up into the 90s through the remainder of the week though the thermometer will remain in the mid to upper 80s.

Chances for rain – slight chances heading into the start of the week – are back in the forecast for next weekend.

Some students will be heading back to school later this week on Friday, with highs expected in the upper 80s and low 90s. The first week of August – when most students will start back to class this academic year – will be experiencing highs in the mid to upper 80s for the day.

Hurricane Activity

Good news for those planning last-minute vacations before school starts: nothing should get in the way of enjoying the beach on the Atlantic and along the Gulf, but fish storms are pushing through the eastern Pacific.

Hurricanes Fausto and Genevieve are still churning through the Pacific, sitting east of Hawaii and heading northwest of the islands.

By the time it passes by Hawaii, it’ll have lost strength from its current 85 mph speeds and turn into a tropical storm and depression before it fizzles out heading toward the Central Pacific.

Genevieve is currently a major hurricane and slated to stay that way while remaining out at sea for the time being. It’s sitting at 120 mph sustained winds and moving northwest well off the southern coast of Mexico and remain there, losing strength by Friday and beginning to devolve.