Cooler forecast for West as heat dome moves on
Southeast, East to start April with warner temps
By: Doyle Rice
USA Today
..... As we prepare to turn the calendar to April, it appears that we can finally shed all talk of the polar vortex until next winter as milder weather takes hold across much of the eastern United States and a cool-down ends the western heat wave.
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A surge of warmth featuring temperatures above the historical average will blanket the Southeast and parts of the eastern United States to start April, Accuweather said in an Online forecast. the pattern will support multiple days of temperature in the 90s with increasing risks for thunderstorms and heavy rainfall as a front advances later in the period.
..... The warm weather may be "long-lasting," AccuWeather meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said in an Online forecast. Some rain and atoms will come along with the warmth in much of the central and eastern United States the week of March 30, [2026] weather.com said in an Online forecast. "this will bring much-needed rain to places that are drought-stricken, especially across parts of the mid-South and Tennessee Valley, while also helping to wash away some of the pollen."
..... Meanwhile, some good news is in the forecast for the drought- and heat-plagued West as a cool, wet and even snowy pattern is forecast to bring some relief across the region.
..... Calling it a "major pattern shift," Weather Trader meteorologist Ryan Maue said the heat dome that's baked the West for weeks will shift east and build into early April. At the same time, a though and much cooler weather will arrive into the western United States by midweek, he said in an email.
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The prolonged and record-smashing heat wave across the western United States will give way to a series of Pacific storms as April begins, bringing cooler air, rain and mountain snow, AccurWeather said. While temperatures will drop significantly, precipitation totals are expected to remain limited in key drought areas.
..... An atmospheric river should track across California, even into southern California, by March 31, [2026] but is currently forecast to remain too weak to cause flooding issues, said the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Weather Prediction Center.
..... Rain and mountain snow will be common across the Inter-mountain West with multiple rounds thorough the week of March 30, [2026] through the precipitation may be on the light side. It's possible that parts of California, including San Francisco, will get only a few tenths of an inch of rain.
..... High-elevations snow is expected the night of March 30 into March 31 [2026] and possibly again later in the week, but totals will be limited compared to earlier winter storms. However, gusty winds could be a concern across the Inter-mountain West to the Rockies.
..... Overall, across the West, unsettled conditions are expected early in April, [2026] the Weather Prediction Center said.