Today, however, we'll take a quick look to the east. Strong winds associated with a thunderstorm complex known as a derecho produced wind gusts up to 80 miles per hour, knocking out power for more than a million people in the DC area yesterday.
Washington-Reagan airport had a wind gust to 70 mph. Check out the dramatic passage of the gust front just before 0300 UTC.
The power outages couldn't come at a worse time as the region is embroiled in a terrible heat wave and the loss of air conditioning is a concern for heat-related illness. It hit 104ºF yesterday at Dulles Airport, setting a new maximum temperature record for June by 2 degrees. Fortunately, it's running several degrees cooler today, although the heat is probably still a concern for vulnerable people.
For more on the derecho and it's impacts, see this report from the Capitol Weather Gang.
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