Sweet heat relief has arrived.
After wrapping up the weekend with temperatures in the high 90s and heat indexes as high as 110 degrees, New York City cooled down Monday with the help of evening thunderstorms. Tuesday’s high is expected to top out around 75 degrees, and the rest of the week will be in the 80s, according to the National Weather Service.
"It will still feel somewhat humid, but the heat just won’t feel as oppressive,” said National Weather Service meteorologist John Cristantello. “It will just feel more like a typical summer day.”
The forecast for cooler temperatures came as a relief to New Yorkers.
At Grand Army Plaza’s fountain, Tyler Minoski, 25, of the East Village, stretched his arms out as the mist blew into his face.
"It’s been miserable. We’ve been stuck inside with the AC all weekend," Minoski said.
He and Julia Kinoski, 24, of the West Village, were cooling off before their brunch reservation on Sunday.
"I’m ready for the relief," Kinoski said. "It’s been brutal."
Mayor Bill de Blasio declared a heat emergency going into the weekend, extending hours for beaches and cooling centers.
Claire Shaw, 37, of Park Slope, and her son Felix went to Jacob Riis Beach on Sunday to try to beat the heat, although she limited his exposure to the elements this weekend.
"He’s been cooped up inside so he has a lot of energy," Shaw said. "We were lucky enough that we didn’t have to go outside. You think about it twice before you do in this weather."
De Blasio also extended hours for the city’s intermediate- and Olympic-sized pools. Brooklyn’s McCarren Park Pool saw a line of about 100 people waiting to get in as children inside splashed around.
Tawona Burtt, 50, of Crown Heights, was at the pool with her daughter and granddaughters. She has asthma and was looking to take a dip.
"It’s rough. This is a different heat. You can’t breathe," Burtt said, adding: "It’s summer. What are you going to do? The humidity is the problem."
For a few, however, the heat wave was a welcome change. Across the street from McCarren Park Pool, people ran laps around the track and laid in the grass.
Marcus Hollands, 28, who moved to East Williamsburg from Australia, said the heat is normal where he’s from.
"It’s actually a relief in some ways. It’s good to get out of the colder season, it’s warmer, and you get to run and swim," said Hollands, who had just gotten out of the pool and was waiting to meet some friends. "It’s always good to get a little bit of variation."
