Warm stretch in North Jersey could approach record-setting April temperatures
New Jersey is set to see some unseasonably warm weather this week, with temperatures in the high 80s in the forecast.
Through Friday, high temperatures will range from 80 to 86 degrees in North Jersey, approaching record highs.
On Friday, the temperature could hit the high 80s, which would break a mark set in 1941, when it was 88 degrees.
Wednesday night could bring a record-high low temperature, with warm nights also in the forecast. If the temperature doesn't drop below 58 degrees it would set a new high for a low temperature on April 12.
Meteorologist James Connolly of the National Weather Service said the warm weather is part of a wave of warm and cold temperatures.
"We've got a ridge of high pressure to the west and we've got a warm air mass to the east," he said. "If we get into the West Coast of the United States up to Alaska, they're kind of in colder than normal patterns ... We're on the warm side and the West is on the cold side."
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The warm temperatures could exacerbate brush fire worries in the region. On Tuesday, a five-alarm brush fire spread across 10 acres in Teaneck near Overpeck Park and the Teaneck Creek Conservancy. Earlier that day, a fire at a recycling plant near Liberty State Park in Jersey City spread to brush and caused shutdowns for NJ Transit.
On Wednesday afternoon in West Milford, responders were on scene at a fire raging in the woods near the Charlotteburg Reservoir along Route 23. Just before 2:30 p.m., the NJ Department of Transportation issued an alert that all northbound lanes of the highway were shut down. Meanwhile, township police said nearby Echo Lake Road − a lifeline for local residents when the highway is inaccessible − was also closed to traffic.
The state Department of Environmental Protection put New Jersey on "very high" alert for forest fires, the second highest risk rating.
While reservoir levels are above average in most of North Jersey, the region is either moderately or severely dry due to low precipitation numbers of the past 90 days. Still, as of April 9, the DEP rates the state's water supply as normal.
With weird weather patterns abounding, it's theoretically possible some Californians could come to New Jersey to escape the "cold" this weekend.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ weather: Near record-high April temperatures in forecast
