Hot summer weather will bake the metro area over the next few days, with Denver's high expected to hover close to 100 degrees every day from Thursday to Saturday.
Expect highs around 96 on Thursday. Friday will be the hottest day of the three, with a high around 98-and a potential to jump into triple digits in some parts of the city, according to the National Weather Service.
It comes as most parts of Colorado and the country as a whole are roasting in a summer heat wave. The NWS has already issued one extreme heat advisory this week. On Monday, Denver hit 100 degrees, breaking a record for the date set in 1998.
Temperatures are potentially dangerous for some with preexisting health conditions and limited access to air conditioning. But it's not too far above the city's average this time of year, said Bernie Meier, a forecaster with the NWS.
"Our average for late July is 90, 91 degrees," Meier said. "So it's a tiny bit out of the norm, but not too unusual. It's our hottest time of year."
Due to lower nighttime temperatures, the NWS hasn't issued an extreme heat advisory for the later part of the week yet. That could change, though, Meier said.
Libraries are open to the public and free of charge for people to cool off in, according to the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment.
More public cooling shelters will open if the NWS issues a heat advisory for any part of the later half of the week, the department said in a statement.
"Currently, cooling shelters are opened when the National Weather Service issues an extreme heat advisory or if extreme heat coincides with mass power and/or HVAC outages," the department said. "We encourage folks to take precautions to avoid heat-related illness during hot days and will send another notice if recreation centers are activated as cooling centers again this week."
Saturday highs are forecast at around 97 degrees.
Temperatures are also soaring all across the state as a dome of high pressure sits over the western United States.
Swaths of the Eastern Plains are expected to log highs at or above 100 degrees on Thursday. Julesberg and Wray both have forecast highs of 101.
It's a little more tolerable in the mountains, where both Winter Park and Copper Mountain have forecast highs in the 70s for the next few days.
But Grand Junction's high is expected to be above 100 degrees every day through Saturday. Friday's high is expected to hit 102.
The NWS has issued a heat advisory for Grand Junction from noon on Friday through Saturday. The agency encourages residents to take basic safety precautions, including limiting excessive activity outdoors and to check on older relatives with preexisting health conditions.
Weather across the state is expected to cool off starting Sunday. Highs next week are expected to sit in the mid-to-upper 80's in most communities.
