Easter weekend weather in Daytona Beach: What's the forecast for sunrise services, events?
As the Easter holiday weekend approaches, many Volusia-Flagler residents are making plans to attend sunrise services, Easter egg hunts, festivals and other activities from New Smyrna Beach to Palm Coast.
Will the sun be shining on those holiday events?
The outlook is optimistic, said Megan Tollefsen, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Melbourne.
Starting on Good Friday, an area of high pressure is forecast to settle over Volusia and Flagler counties, offering sunny skies and little, if any, chance of rain showers through Easter Sunday, Tollefsen said.
“We’re expecting sunny skies, with no rain chances from Friday through Sunday,” Tollefsen said. “Temperatures will be gradually warming Friday through Sunday from the low to mid 70s on Friday to mid-70s and low 80s on Saturday and then the upper 70s to mid-80s on Sunday.”
The outlook also is promising for tides on Daytona Beach during the window of the popular Easter Sunday Sunrise Service on the sands east of the Daytona Beach Bandshell. According to the Volusia County Beach Safety Ocean Rescue Volusia Beaches mobile app, low tide on Easter is expected at 6:51 a.m. Sunday.
Ahead of that promising forecast, however, there is rain expected overnight Wednesday into Thursday ahead of the arrival of the high-pressure system affecting the weekend, Tollefsen said.
“Portions of northern Volusia and the southern area of Flagler are at a marginal risk for severe weather” overnight Wednesday, Tollefsen said. “If storms do develop, they will be capable of frequent lightning strikes, wind gusts of 40-60 mph and the potential for small hail.”
As drier air arrives over the weekend, the lower relative humidity combined with gustier winds also could combine to create sensitive fire weather conditions, Tollefsen said.
Here’s the extended forecast for Easter weekend.
Daytona Beach weather radar
Daytona Beach extended forecast
Wednesday: A 20% chance of daytime showers and thunderstorms after 2 p.m., increasing to 40% at night. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 80. South wind 5 to 10 mph.
Thursday: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm before 2 p.m., with a daytime rain chance of 60%. Cloudy, then gradual clearing during the afternoon, with a high near 73. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph. New rainfall amounts between 1/10 and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Good Friday: Sunny, with a high near 71 and nighttime low around 54. North northeast wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 75 and nighttime low around 56. South southwest wind 5 to 10 mph becoming east southeast in the afternoon.
Easter Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 78. West southwest wind 5 to 10 mph becoming southeast in the afternoon. Partly cloudy at night, with a low around 58. South southeast wind around 10 mph becoming west southwest after midnight.
Palm Coast extended forecast
Wednesday: A 30% chance of daytime showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 3 p.m., increasing to 60% at night. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 82 and nighttime low around 66. Southeast wind 8 to 11 mph, with gusts as high as 17 mph. New rainfall amounts between ½ and ¾ of an inch possible.
Thursday: Showers and thunderstorms likely before noon, then a slight chance of showers between noon and 1 p.m., with 60% chance of precipitation. Cloudy through mid morning, then gradual clearing, with a high near 75, nighttime low around 54. New precipitation amounts between 1/10 and ¼ of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Good Friday: Sunny, with a high near 69, nighttime low around 51. North wind around 11 mph, with gusts as high as 17 mph.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 77, nighttime low around 54.
Easter Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 80, nighttime low around 57.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Easter weekend weather forecast for Daytona Beach, Volusia-Flagler
