Weather

Hot, dry pattern ahead for much of the Heartland

Tropical Storm Bertha will drift northward, moving inland later Wednesday across the Carolinas.

Storm-total rainfall could reach 2 to 4 inches or more across the Carolinas and southwestern Virginia, leading to flash flooding. Farther west, shower activity will gradually shift eastward, with drier air overspreading the Mississippi Valley by Friday and the Ohio Valley on Saturday. Lingering showers along the Atlantic Seaboard should end by Sunday.

Most of the West will experience hot, dry weather during the next several days, except for some weekend showers and cooler weather in the Pacific Northwest. Cool weather will also develop in most areas from the Plains eastward.

Looking ahead, the 6- to 10-day outlook calls for the likelihood of above-normal temperatures throughout the nation’s mid-section, while cooler-than-normal conditions will cover the East and much of the Far West.

Meanwhile, above-normal precipitation in the West, southern Texas, and across the nation’s northern tier as far east as Lake Superior should contrast with drier-than-normal weather from the central and southern Plains to the East Coast.