Record-breaking temperatures recorded today, rain possible tonight and tomorrow
As of writing, Lafayette Regional recorded a high temperature of 107 degrees and New Iberia a high temperature of 108 degrees. At the very least, this ties the hottest temperature ever recorded in Lafayette and ties the all-time record high of 107 degrees, set back in 1901. I have a feeling our "official" high will likely be 108 degrees in Lafayette, which would outright break the record. If anyone cares, we'll find that out in a few hours.
More importantly, some rainfall has been moving across the central parts of the state this afternoon. Some high-resolution models, namely the HRRR model, move this activity into Acadiana later tonight. It would make sense these storms would survive later into the night, given the intense heat across the area today.
A weak frontal boundary will move into the area tomorrow. Models are split on how much rainfall Acadiana will see from this. Some models try to bring some storms into Acadiana tomorrow evening, while others focus the activity across southeastern Louisiana through the day. Unfortunately, the highest rain chance I can confidently forecast is around 40%. This means 60% of the area, or the majority, won't see the rainfall. Scattered rainfall totals of a half-inch to an inch will be possible. At this point, we can hope the storms somehow overachieve the model projections and give the majority of the area some much-needed rainfall. At the very least, the intense heat will end, as highs are expected to be in the mid-90s each day this upcoming week!
Storms could be possible south of I-10 on Tuesday as the front works down to the south. Drier air works in and clears us out on Wednesday and Thursday. Hopefully, this increase in northerly winds can help with the smoke situation, but unfortunately, it will worsen the fire danger for areas that do not see rainfall.
Scattered storms will be possible on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.