New Yorkers cross 41st Street and Fifth Avenue in Manhattan during a heatwave on June 25, 2025 in New York City.
Photo: Craig T Fruchtman/Getty Images

New York City is bracing for back-to-back days of extremely hot weather through the Fourth of July holiday weekend, including possible citywide high temperatures that residents haven’t experienced in more than a decade.

The National Weather Service has issued an Extreme Heat Warning for the entirety of New York City as well as the Lower Hudson Valley, northeast New Jersey, and parts of southern Connecticut for Wednesday. Per the agency, the heat is expected to begin midweek, peaking from Thursday through Friday with the potential for high temperatures to linger into Saturday, July 4. The region is under a heat advisory through Saturday.

According to WNBC’s forecast, temperatures are expected to hit 100 degrees on both Thursday and Friday, accompanied by high humidity, which will add up to heat indices in the 105 to 110 degree range for the city and much of the surrounding region. The sweltering heat may result in the hottest temperatures in New York City in quite some time. The city last registered 100 degrees in Central Park on July 12, 2012, nearly 14 years ago. The closest the park has come since was last year, when the thermometer reached 99 degrees on June 24 during a multiday heatwave. John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens hit 102 degrees during that stretch, per the New York Times.

Extreme Heat Watches remain in effect Wednesday through Saturday. Here are some heat statistics and records for the period of 7/1 through 7/4. pic.twitter.com/fSleLbsT2e

— NWS New York NY (@NWSNewYorkNY) June 30, 2026

The oppressive temperatures are the result of a heat dome, a high-pressure system that traps hot air over a region for a length of time, resulting in an extensive period of extreme heat. The heatwave, which is extending up through New England and south along the East Coast, comes amid countrywide festivities for the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding on July 4 as well as a key round-of-16 match in the World Cup scheduled for the holiday in Philadelphia, where temperatures are expected to hit, and likely exceed, 100 degrees.

On Monday, Mayor Zohran Mamdani told New Yorkers that they should start making plans to stay safe and cool, advising them to seek out city-operated cooling centers across the five boroughs. “These are extremely dangerous conditions, and New Yorkers must plan now to stay safe and help their neighbors do the same. The best way to prepare for extreme heat is to identify a safe, air-conditioned place you can spend the hot days. If you don’t have air-conditioning at home, plan to stay with family and friends or visit a free, public cooling center. Beginning Wednesday, the City will activate hundreds of free locations across the city,” he wrote on social media.

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