Make sure you've got plenty of cold water and popsicles on hand! A large portion of the United States is set to get hit with the first heat wave of the year -- and it's not even summer yet.
The National Weather Service says "anomalous heat" is expected to spread from the central/southern Plains toward the Midwest over the next several days, engulfing much of the nation's heartland in summerlike humidity.
According to the NWS, high temperatures could reach well up into the 90s from central Iowa all the way south to the central Gulf Coast and South Texas, and as far north as northern Michigan and Wisconsin.
"It is pretty rare to get a heat wave that is looking this extreme in early May," Stephen Harrison, a meteorologist for the NWS, told CNN. "Usually, this is the kind of heat that we see in July or August."
Daytime record high temperatures are likely to be broken throughout much of the South-Central U.S. each day this week, the NWS added.
The heat will be most expansive on Wednesday, with highs near 90 or higher in Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois and everywhere to the south, The Washington Post reported. By Thursday, the record-challenging heat will reach northern states.
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Cities that could see their first 90-degree day of the year and other records smashed this week include Kansas City, MO, St. Louis, MO, Little Rock, AR, Memphis, TN, Nashville, TN, Omaha, NE, Chicago, IL, Des Moines, IA, Minneapolis, MN, and Louisville, KY. Other cities like Detroit, MI, Columbus, OH, and Indianapolis, IN, could see temperatures in the mid- to high-80s.
Parts of Texas, which already saw a weekend of record-breaking temperatures, could continue to see the mercury rise past 100 this week. Heat Advisories have been posted for several areas in South and West Texas.
The heat should subside by the end of the week.
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Meantime, the NWS has issued High Wind Warnings and Wind Advisories from southern California on east to the southern High Plains. The combination of strong winds, very low relative humidity levels, and dry fuels has given way to a dangerous stretch of fire weather from eastern Arizona to the southern High Plains.
While much of the country bakes in the first real taste of summer, the West and East Coasts will remain on the abnormally cooler side, according to the NWS. The coolest conditions versus normal are expected along the West Coast and extending into the northern Rockies.
The most tranquil weather pattern will set up along the East Coast, where chilly temperatures for mid-May have struggled to get out of the 60s. The NWS says warmer than normal temperatures will first spill over into northern New England by Tuesday.
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