Schools to Close Early Thursday; Heat Advisory in Effect through 8 p.m. Thursday

For the second day this week, Baltimore County Public Schools will close two hours early Thursday.

The school announced that, because extreme heat and humidity is forecast, schools will close early, and there will be no afternoon pre-kindergarten.

Schools closed two hours early on Wednesday for the same reasons.

The high Wednesday was expected to be in the mid- to upper 90s.

The high Thursday is expected to be about 96 degrees with a 100-degree heat index, according to the NWS. But there could be relief ahead as there's a 30 percent chance of thunderstorms Thursday evening.

Heat advisory

Meanwhile, the National Weather Service has a Heat Advisory, and a Hazardous Weather Outlook in effect for Pikesville and the Baltimore/Washington, D.C. area due to the heat and humidity. Both are in effect through 8 p.m. Thursday.

The NWS also has an Air Quality Alert in effect through Wednesday. The alert is code orange, meaning that pollution levels could affect sensitive groups of people, including the elderly.

What to do/what not to do

The NWS recommends:

• Drink plenty of fluids
• Stay in an air-conditioned room
• Check on relatives and neighbors
• Wear loose-fitting clothing
• When working outside, take frequent breaks in the shade
• Move anyone who is overcome by heat to a shaded area and call 911, as heat illness is an emergency.