Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 349 PM EDT Wed Jul 27 2016 Valid 00Z Thu Jul 28 2016 - 00Z Sat Jul 30 2016 ...Above average temperatures expected to continue for the East and the West... ...Heavy rain possible through Thursday from the lower Mississippi valley to the central Appalachians... ...Severe thunderstorms possible Thursday along the central Rockies and the surrounding Plains and across portions of the Mid-Atlantic... As the ridge of high pressure builds across the West the upper-level trough will extend southward into the Ohio valley and Mid-Atlantic region. A surface cold front will drag through the central Plains, Midwest and Great Lakes region on Thursday - and into the southern Plains, Middle Mississippi and Ohio valleys on Friday. This system will overtake the quasi-stationary boundary spanning from the Mid-Atlantic to the western edge of the central Plains. Scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms are forecast for much of the area from the Gulf Coast to Midwest and east - some of which could produce locally heavy rainfall. Hot conditions will persist along the Eastern Seaboard, with afternoon high temperatures on Thursday are forecast to reach 5 to 10 degrees above average. Most areas in the West will be dry, with the exception of a few isolated thunderstorms across Arizona and New Mexico each day. Daily temperatures are anticipated to register 10 to 15 degrees above seasonal normal through Friday. These hot and dry conditions will only exacerbate drought conditions and wildfires, in areas experiencing them. Campbell Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php