Millions of Americans from Texas to New York will feel temperatures nosedive by 50F and experience potentially dangerous rain storms over Memorial Day weekend.
The massive cooldown is set to make large parts of the country feel more like Thanksgiving than early May, when the summer travel period unofficially kicks off.
Texas and Louisiana are expected to see the heaviest storms, though they could stretch into the Appalachian Mountains over the course of the weekend.
Cities including Baltimore, Cleveland, New York City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Washington will also see rain during the three–day festivities.
The colder May temperatures mark a reversal from the much warmer weather experienced in parts of the East Coast earlier this week.
Newark, New Jersey, tied its hottest temperature ever recorded in May when it hit 99F on Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.
But by Saturday, the weather had dropped by more than 40 degrees to 57 F.
As a whole, daytime highs across the Northeast were expected to sit between the mid–50s and 60s, with better weather not expected until Monday.
Millions of Americans will see their Memorial Day weekends disrupted by rainy weather, which threatens to flood large parts of Louisiana and Texas
Most of south central Texas, including Houston (pictured), was placed under a flood watch
The temperature drop in the Northeast will make early May feel more like Thanksgiving, rather than the unofficial start of the summer travel period
The west coast was spared from the temperature drop and the rainfall, but is scheduled to experience unseasonably warm weather over Memorial Day weekend
Louisiana and Texas faced the greatest risk of flash flooding over Memorial Day weekend.
Most of south central Texas was placed under a flood watch, with the National Weather Service warning that life–threatening flooding was possible.
That included cities like Houston and San Antonio, which were expected to see rainfall amounts of one to three inches.
While that in itself is not exceedingly high, the potential for isolated totals of up to six inches of rainfall ‘could occur quickly,’ the NWS said, causing the watches to go into effect.
The highest amounts of rainfall, which could even reach up to 10 inches around Beaumont, Texas, are predicted between 7am Saturday and 7am Sunday.
Southwest, central and south central Louisiana were also placed under a flood watch through 7pm on Monday.
The NWS cautioned that the watch was likely to be extended ‘further into next week.’
Meanwhile, southeast Louisiana faced the possibility of a ‘few weak tornadoes’ with small hail and a relatively low risk of flash flooding, the NWS added.
The worst rain and flooding is expected in Texas and Louisiana, where flood watches have already been issued
Rain will be experienced in the Northeast over the three-day festive period, with the likes of Washington DC, New York City and Philadelphia all impacted
New York City officials warned locals to watch out for extreme heat earlier this week, but the city was expected to see rain throughout Memorial Day weekend
On Sunday, the storms were expected to push from eastern Texas into the lower Mississippi Valley.
The rainfall could reach north Georgia and South Carolina, as well as southwestern North Carolina, on Monday.
Though the inches of rainfall for the storm were not exceedingly high, its slow moving nature threatened to cause flash floods.
The Northeast US will also see rain, though flooding is not expected. However, a steep temperature drop of up to 40F will arrive over Memorial Day weekend.
Scorching heat had reached the East Coast earlier this week, with New York City seeing near–90F weather and city authorities reminding locals to be mindful of the ‘extreme heat.’
In Washington DC, Dulles International Airport reached a record–high 94F for May on Monday, according to WTOP.
Philadelphia also reached a record–high on Monday at 96F, CBS News reported.
However, temperatures around the East Coast were expected to remain around the mid–50s over the weekend.
Even though Texas and Louisiana are expected to see the heaviest storms, they could stretch into the Appalachian Mountains over the course of the weekend and into Monday
The west coast will be spared from the rainy weather and coldness and stay unseasonably warm over the holiday weekend.
Temperatures will peak in the 80Fs, while the desert valleys of Arizona, California and Nevada are expected to see temperatures into the 90Fs and 100Fs through Sunday.
Memorial Day is widely seen as kicking off the summer travel period but the weather threatens to disrupt holiday plans for millions of Americans all over the country.
It is estimated 45 million Americans would travel at least 50 miles from home during the holiday, according to AAA.
That came despite higher gas prices than last year’s holiday weekend, with the current national average sitting at around $4.52 per gallon.
Meanwhile, more than 18 million passengers will pass through US airports over the Memorial Day festivities, the Transportation Security Administration said.
