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MOST ACCURATE FORECAST: Historic March heatwave builds in, as record-breaking heat continues

A strong ridge of high pressure building over the southwest will send temperatures soaring, eventually running close to 30 degrees above normal by the end of the week.

Historic March heatwave builds in, as record-breaking heat continues

By: Ashlee DeMartino

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PHOENIX — A strong ridge of high pressure building over the southwest will send temperatures soaring, eventually running close to 30 degrees above normal by the end of the week.

Here in the Valley, highs stay in the 90s Monday and Tuesday before pushing into the triple digits by the middle of the week.

Because of the dangerous early-season heat, the National Weather Service has issued Extreme Heat Watches for the Valley Thursday through Sunday.

Those will also be ABC15 Weather Action Days as a reminder to take precautions.

If you plan to be outdoors, try to limit strenuous activity during the hottest part of the day and drink plenty of water.

Some hiking trails could be closed to protect hikers, and first responders and dogs are not allowed on trails when temperatures reach 100 degrees or higher.

Forecast highs could even push past 105 degrees between Thursday and Saturday, heat levels Phoenix typically does not see until late May.

The peak of this heat dome looks to arrive Friday into Saturday before temperatures fall back into the 90s the next week, still well above normal for late March.

That kind of heat this early in the year could break several records in Phoenix. Daily high temperature records are likely to fall, and we could also set new marks for the earliest 100-degree and 105-degree days and the most triple-digit days ever recorded in March.

Right now, the earliest Phoenix has ever reached 100 degrees was March 26, 1988. That is also the only time the city has ever hit the triple-digit mark during the month of March. But next week, temperatures could reach 100 or hotter from Wednesday through at least Sunday.