Inter Miami and León compete in the first half of their Leagues Cup 2026 soccer match as rain clouds form overhead Nu Stadium on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026, in Miami, Fla. It could rain Friday, Aug. 28, for the Dolphins’ game against Atlanta at Miami Gardens’ Hard Rock Stadium.
Matias J. Ocner
mocner@miamiherald.com
South Florida’s turbulent weather since the weekend that killed a mother and her daughter, spawned an Everglades wildfire, and mixed heat with storms looks to remain unsettled — including for Friday’s Miami Dolphins home game.
“We do need the rain, especially with the wildfires that we have been tracking here in South Florida,” said CBS News Miami meteorologist Lissette Gonzalez during her Tuesday morning broadcast.
Several of these fires around Homestead’s Everglades National Park have been completely contained, including the Lemur, Vulture, Movie Dome and 22 fires. The Chipmunk Fire, which has burned through 17,000 acres not far from Shark Valley, was 60% contained as of Tuesday morning, Gonzalez said. That one was caused by a lightning strike last Friday.
The smoke is expected to track toward the interior and north and west areas of Florida through Tuesday, Gonzalez said.
Though the smokey skies have improved over Monday, “if you have any respiratory issues you might want to stay inside,” Gonzalez cautioned on Tuesday.
As the smoke clears, expect temperatures to soar into the 90s, with feels-like temperatures around 103 between 1 and 3 p.m. — under the 105 threshold that would trigger a heat advisory in Miami-Dade.
Aerial view of the Vulture Fire’s southern edge (looking north) in Everglades National Park Photo courtesy U.S. Wildland Fire Service
The Tuesday morning rains and sporadic storms that spread from Miami International Airport, Miami Springs and Kendall into Broward resume in the afternoon, around 20%, so figure on some rainy day dismissals from schools, she said.
These sporadic downpours will continue.
“It’s looking like a wetter Wednesday,” Gonzalez said as another line of showers and storms pick up over the next couple of days, leading to a 50% chance Wednesday and Thursday in South Florida, according to the National Weather Service in Miami.
That mix of showers and storms continue for the rest of the week, ramping up over the weekend, with wet weather chances swelling to 60% Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Temperatures are expected to hover around 90 despite the clouds.
The Miami Dolphins’ final preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons is a home game at 7 p.m. Friday at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. Look for a 20% chance of rain and a temperature of 81 at kickoff time, according to the weather service’s hourly forecast.
Be mindful of accompanying lightning.
On Sunday, a lightning strike in Margate killed a mother and her 2-year-old daughter as she ushered her twins off the sidewalk into a relative’s house.
The National Hurricane Center is also tracking two disturbances in the Atlantic with one — Dolly — likely to develop into a tropical depression or storm in the next two to seven days. That wave, given a 70% development chance, is of interest for the Caribbean and Atlantic Coast at this time.
READ MORE: Chances are rising for the next named storm in the Atlantic to form
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The tropical wave in the eastern Atlantic has rising chances of formation this week. NHC
Miami Herald
Miami Herald consumer trends reporter Howard Cohen, a 2017 Media Excellence Awards winner, has covered pop music, theater, health and fitness, obituaries, municipal government, breaking news and general assignment. He started his career in the Features department at the Miami Herald in 1991. Cohen is an adjunct professor at the University of Miami School of Communication.
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