Temperatures In The 80s Across North Texas

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - It was a one-two punch over the weekend, as Tropical Storm Lee and a strong cold front brought high winds and much drier air to North Texas. Emergency crews labored to fight as many as 12 wildfires on Sunday, and will continue to do so again on Labor Day. There is a Red Flag Warning in effect until 9:00 p.m. Monday night, with north winds gusting over 30 mph and the relative humidity below 20 percent.

The winds should ease during the Monday evening hours, dipping down to 5 or 10 mph by midnight. The light winds and clear skies will allow strong radiational cooling during the overnight hours, letting temperatures drop into the 50s by Tuesday morning – levels that North Texas has not felt since mid-May, and is actually more indicative of mid-October.

Expect more 50-something temperatures in North Texas on Wednesday morning, and on Thursday morning as well for rural areas.

So, which day would be the pick of the week? Just about any of them! This Labor Day and Tuesday will certainly be exceptional, with high temperatures near the mid-80s. Mercury will push into the upper 80s on Wednesday and into the weekend, reaching back into the 90s by next week.

The National Hurricane Center issued its final update on Tropical Depression Lee, as the system lost tropical characteristics on Monday morning and became extratropical. Since last Thursday, the storm dumped 8 to 14 inches of rain across Louisiana and Mississippi.

The remnants of Lee have prompted Tornado Watches, Flood Warnings and Flash Flood Watches from Alabama and Georgia up into the Tennessee Valley through Monday, with a potential for as much as 8 inches of rain.

Energy and moisture from Lee is getting pulled up along a cold front that stretches all the way into upstate New York. As many as 20 states are covered by Flash Flood Warnings, from Louisiana to Maine, along this powerful early season cold front.