Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 354 PM EDT Wed Aug 19 2020 Valid 00Z Thu Aug 20 2020 - 00Z Sat Aug 22 2020 ...Record heat eases along parts of the West Coast but remains in the Desert Southwest, while fire danger remains a threat... ...Scattered showers and thunderstorms will persist for the coming days across the southeastern quadrant of the country... An upper-level high located over the Southwest is forecast to weaken somewhat over the next couple of days, which along with a Pacific cold front should lead to some moderation of temperatures especially for the Northwest and northern California. However, record high temperatures are forecast to be widespread across the Desert Southwest again Thursday and Friday, along with a few potential records in the Central Great Basin, Central/Southern Rockies, and Southern High Plains. Fire danger is also a continued threat in the West with the hot and dry conditions. Elevated to Critical Risks of fire weather are in place from the Storm Prediction Center for portions of California across the Great Basin and Northern Rockies for the next couple of days. Furthermore, scattered dry thunderstorms could produce lightning strikes that could ignite wildfires. Some areas of California and Colorado have Air Quality Alerts in place due to smoke from ongoing fires. On the other hand, much of the eastern half of the country will experience cooler than normal temperatures due to persistent upper-level troughing. A stalled front interacting with tropical moisture should cause continued chances for showers and thunderstorms for much of the Southeast including Florida as well as the Mid-Atlantic through the end of the workweek. Rainfall totals in most areas should not be significant, but locally heavy rainfall could cause isolated concerns for flooding or flash flooding. A few strong storms containing gusty winds cannot be ruled out either, especially Thursday. Isolated to scattered strong thunderstorms are also a possibility in the Rockies to Plains, particularly each afternoon/evening. Tate Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php