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Contractors in the West, prepare for heat; Eastern U.S. to see near-normal temps, rain
As folks across the U.S. start cranking up their air conditioning to beat the summer heat, HVAC contractors are gearing up for what meteorologists predict will be a h otter-than-normal - at least, for a large part of the country. According to forecasts from sources like AccuWeather and NOAA, demand for a/c will be strong in areas west of the Mississippi, with potential for increased HVAC sales in the East despite overall normal-level temperatures. A hot or muggy summer means that contractors will likely have their work cut out for them in the coming months.
ACCUWEATHER
"One of the big themes of this summer is the hottest regions - where we see the extended hot periods - are going to be over the western part of the country, especially the interior West and southern Plains: El Paso, Amarillo, [Texas]," said Max Vido, a long-range meteorologist at AccuWeather.
Driving that pattern is a higher-than-normal jetstream, allowing heat to build up across California, Nevada, and extending northwest into Oregon.
"Seattle, Portland might end up a little closer [to normal temperatures], with a little flow coming off the ocean," Vido said. "But definitely across the interior, it's going to be pretty hot. I think some of those areas don't have as much air conditioning up through there, so perhaps a hot summer could help drive some sales through those areas."
The high Plains, already in extreme drought, are in for a hotter-than-normal summer, while the central and northern Plains (Kansas, Nebraska, Dakotas, and into Minnesota) will see warmer and drier weather as well. Further west in the Four Corners region (Phoenix; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Salt Lake City; and Denver), the hottest months will be June and July, followed by near-normal temperatures for August.
East of the Mississippi, there won't be as many of the long heat waves that bring a s pike in cooling demand, Vido said. Temperatures from the Gulf Coast to the Southeast to Appalachia will be near normal, with above-average rainfall.
On the flip side, all the humidity in the air will mean it's muggier than normal.
"Despite temperatures not getting into the 90s, the RealFeel® temperatures will be pretty...