Dangerous Heat Builds and Expands; Critical Fire Weather for the Southwest; Severe Thunderstorms for Plains and Midwest

Dangerous to record breaking heat will build across the center of the nation and slowly build eastward this week. Wildfire conditions remain critical for the Southwest and portions of the Great Basin through Monday. For the northern Plains and upper Midwest, severe thunderstorms with the potential for large to very large hail and severe winds are the primary hazards. Read More >

Map of estimated Water Temperatures
List of Water Temperature observations (at bottom of page/list)

Latest Marine Discussion:

.MARINE... Overall synoptic gradients are on the weaker side given the time of year. There could be a few surges up the Chesapeake Bay at times, but confidence is low if these will be strong enough to cause any Small Craft Advisories. The bigger issue for the waterways will be a multi-day period of strong to severe thunderstorms. For today, there is an Enhanced Risk for severe weather which will likely necessitate a number of Special Marine Warnings. For those with outdoor plans on Independence Day, make sure you have multiple ways to receive hazardous weather alerts. A brunt of the activity is expected in the late afternoon to evening hours, but this could fester into the overnight hours as well. Additional storms are possible on Sunday into Monday which will make for hazardous conditions at times over the waters. Update as of: 400 AM EDT Sat Jul 4 2026

Click/Tap on any zone on map below for marine forecast:
Click here for the Synopsis and text forecast.

[LWX marine zones]

NEW FORECAST TOOL: Experimental NWS Marine Forecast Portal

Click on any marine zone on this map to go to a detailed hour-by-hour weather forecast for the next 7 days

Please provide feedback to cody.ledbetter@noaa.gov

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Marine Forecasts for the Lower Chesapeake Bay and Eastern VA Rivers

(These forecasts are provided by the Weather Forecast Office in Wakefield, VA)

Lower Chesapeake Bay

Smith Point to Windmill Point

Windmill Point to New Point Comfort

New Point Comfort to Little Creek

Little Creek to Cape Henry Incl. CBBT

Eastern VA Rivers

Rappahannock River (Urbanna-Windmill Pt)

York River

James River (Jamestown-James River Bridge)

James River (James River Bridge-HRBT)

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