Summer clings, but cold front is on the way

High temperatures will hit 90 degrees Tuesday and stay there until Friday, when the threat of storms will give the mercury a modest nudge down to 85 degrees.

“Summer’s holding on real tight, right up to the end,” WRAL meteorologist Elizabeth Gardner said.

But a cold front moving in late Friday will zap humidity and knock weekend temperatures into the 70s, offering a prelude to the Sept. 22 formal start of fall.

Saturday’s high is expected to reach 76 degrees, while Sunday’s high will be 79.

“We’re talking about a dramatic cooling behind this front,” Gardner said. “It looks like it’s going to be an absolutely gorgeous weekend.”

The work week got off to a “pleasantly cool” start with temperatures in the 60s across the region early Monday, Gardner said. But a quick warm-up will push the day’s high to 88 degrees. Overnight lows this week will remain in the upper 60s.

In other weather developments, a tropical depression that formed off the coast of Africa on Sunday has been quickly upgraded into a tropical storm. Humberto was centered about 145 miles off the Cape Verde Islands early Monday, with maximum sustained winds near 40 mph.