Warmer temperatures and sticky humidity will dominate the first half of the work week

When the dew point - the true measure of humidity - climbs into the mid- and upper 60s that spells sticky conditions for the outdoors. That is certainly true this Monday morning after warm humid air moved into Mecklenburg county as the cold air damming wedge departed to the north. Despite cloudy skies today will warm to near 80 degrees as southwesterly winds continue to usher in that humidity.

As this is being written a few showers are skirting across the northern sections of the county. There will be more where those came from this afternoon as an upper level short wave kicks off showers and thunderstorms. That's not necessarily good news for those in the western half of Mecklenburg county as they contend with very soggy conditions thanks to several inches of rain over the weekend. National Weather Service radar shows these storm accumulation totals, with more than six inches indicated by the red pixels:

Tuesday looks to be a bit sunnier than today with warmer temperatures. Highs tomorrow will be in the mid-80s, accompanied again by very sticky humidity. Even more showers can be expected, along with a couple of thunderstorms which could turn severe. The Storm Prediction Center has most of Virginia under a Marginal Risk - level 1 of 5 - for severe weather on Tuesday.

Severe weather is also possible Wednesday and Thursday, so it would be wise to keep more than one method of receiving weather warnings (a NOAA weather radio should be one of them) close at hand this week. And remember, even if a storm isn't severe it can cause local flash flooding along with always dangerous lightning. "Turn Around Don't Drown" and "When Thunder Roars Go Indoors" are more than just slogans. They are important phrases designed to keep us safe.