WBRZ - Baton Rouge

Short Term Forecast:  Once again we have a very warm and muggy start to this Friday with mostly clear skies and temperatures in the upper 70s to lower 80s.

A cold front will be moving into the Deep South beginning today along with a few disturbances.  This will give us partly cloudy skies with scattered showers and thunderstorms.  Expect a greater coverage of storms today compared to yesterday.  Some of them could be strong with heavy rain, gusty winds and a lot of lightning strikes.  High temperatures will be in the lower 90s.

The showers and storms will continue into the evening hours.  Then they will taper off to only a few overnight.  It will be pretty warm with lows in the mid 70s.

Weekend Outlook:  The cold front will get into Baton Rouge on Saturday and stall over us through Sunday.  It will tap into the Gulf Moisture over us and that will set off scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms both days.  Some of the storms could be strong to possibly severe with gusty winds, heavy rain and frequent lightning strikes.  High temperatures will be down a few degrees thanks to the clouds and storms as they only get to around 90 both days.  Each night will be mostly cloudy with a few showers and lows in the lower 70s.

Next Week Outlook:  The cold front will finally settle along the Louisiana Coast by Monday and then dissipate.  This will not allow for much cooler and drier air to follow the front.  Therefore, we will stay warm and humid next week.  On Monday, we will have partly cloudy skies with scattered thunderstorms.  It will be a little hotter with highs in the lower 90s and lows in the lower 70s.

Tuesday through Friday will remain unsettled with daily scattered showers and thunderstorms.  High temperatures will be in the lower 90s and lows in the lower 70s.

Tropical Outlook:  Tropical Storm Gordon continue to churn out in the middle of the Atlantic, or about 1195 miles west of the Azores.  Winds are around 65 mph and it is forecast to become a hurricane this weekend before it move over colder waters.  It is moving to the east around 18 mph. 

The remnants of TD # 7 are in the Southwest Gulf of Mexico, or the Bay of Campeche.  They are getting better organized and could try to reform again this weekend since conditions are somewhat favorable for development.  NHC is giving it a medium chance of becoming a tropical cyclone again.  It looks like it will bring some rain to Northern Mexico and South Texas. 

Lastly, there is a tropical wave near the West Coast of Africa and remains disorganized.  Some slow development is possible over the next few days as it moves to the west at 15 to 20 mph.  NHC is giving it a low chance of becoming a tropical cyclone during the next 48 hours. 

Elsewhere...the rest of the tropics are quiet and tropical cyclone formation is not expected through the weekend.

Have a great weekend and stay dry! -Dave