Summer heat expected for longest day of the year in Portland

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- The summer season is here and so too are the toasty temperatures for the greater Portland & Vancouver metro areas.

Afternoon highs are expected to warm rapidly into the low 90s by the late afternoon and early evening hours on Thursday. The official start to summer gets underway at 1:51 p.m. Thursday. That's when temperatures will feel like summer as Portland experiences its most amount of sunlight all year. A total of 15 hours and 41 minutes of daylight are expected Thursday with a sunrise at 5:21 a.m. and a sunset at 9:03 p.m.

The abundant sunshine will keep temperatures above average through Saturday. Another round of 90-degree heat will return Friday before the upper 80s make a comeback on Saturday. A cooler pocket of air will pull temperatures down into the mid-70s by Sunday as clouds increase. A few of Sunday's clouds could bring a stray shower or two to parts of the Pacific Northwest.

The threat of wildfires will increase as the lack of rain and hotter temperatures return to the region this week. A few isolated thunderstorms are possible over the Cascades and points east over the weekend. The thunderstorm threat brings an increase in wildfire concerns as lightning may start and spread fires rapidly in dry conditions.

Temperatures will start to stabilize by the start of next week with highs returning to the mid-70s. A gradual warming trend to the low 80s is expected around the Willamette Valley through the middle of next week.