RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — The National Weather Service has issued Heat Advisories for areas of Central North Carolina on Sunday.
The first Heat Advisory was issued Saturday to go into effect on Sunday between 12 p.m. and 8 p.m. for areas of Central North Carolina as heat index values could approach 110 degrees, the National Weather Service said.
The Heat Advisory was issued for counties including Wake, Durham, Johnston, Franklin, Lee, Chatham, Harnett and Cumberland, according to the National Weather Service.
“Heat index values up to 105 to 109 expected,” the weather service said in the advisory. As of 3 p.m. Saturday, the temperature in Raleigh was 95 degrees. A high of 97 is expected Sunday.
Other counties in the heat advisory include Warren, Halifax, Nash, Edgecombe, Wilson, Moore, Northampton, Wayne, Richmond, Scotland, Hoke and Sampson.
At about 3:49 a.m. Sunday, the National Weather Service also issued a Heat Advisory for Orange County and Anson County, including the cities of Hillsborough, Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Wadesboro and Polkton.
They said heat index values up to around 105 degrees are expected from noon to 8 p.m. Sunday.
Weather officials warned that hot temperatures and high humidity will be dangerous and could result in heat illnesses.
They recommend drinking plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun and check up on relatives and neighbors.
Young children and pets should never be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances, according to the National Weather Service.
The initial Heat Advisory for North Carolina also stretches to the coast. Areas east of central North Carolina included in the heat advisory are Beaufort; Coastal Onslow; Duplin; East Carteret; Greene; Hatteras Island; Inland Onslow; Jones; Lenoir; Mainland Dare; Mainland Hyde; Martin; Northern Craven; Northern Outer Banks; Ocracoke Island; Pamlico; Pitt; Southern Craven; Tyrrell; Washington; West Carteret.
Saturday’s storms
Meanwhile, a Severe Thunderstorm Watch was issued Saturday afternoon for more than 20 counties in the North Carolina mountains.
In western North Carolina, the threat of severe thunderstorms triggered the Severe Thunderstorm Watch until 8 p.m. Saturday.
Forecasters said there was the possibility of scattered damaging wind gusts up to 65 mph along with isolated large hail events up to 1 inch in diameter,
“A well-developed thunderstorm cluster moving east across the middle and eastern portions of Tennessee will continue into the southern Appalachians this afternoon,” the weather service said in the watch, which was allowed to expire at 8 p.m.
The Severe Thunderstorm Watch included cities such as Asheville, Boone, Blowing Rock and Morganton.
The North Carolina counties in the severe thunderstorm watch were Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Swain, Transylvania, Watauga and Yancey.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story indicated the heat advisory was for Saturday, which is the day it was issued.
