Here comes the sun: Record-tying 105 scorches Norfolk

Saturday wasn’t your ordinary hot, summer day. It was simply the hottest ever. The temperature of 105 degrees tied the all-time record at Norfolk International Airport.

“This is the hottest day ever in 92 years, ” meteorologist Evan Stewart of WVEC-TV said.

The high was recorded at the airport at 3:16 p.m., making Saturday the hottest day on record since 1918.

“It tied the all-time record high since the National Weather Service began keeping records in 1871,” weather service meteorologist Jonathan McGee said.

The 105 temperature also broke the airport record of 99 for July 24 , which was set in 1995.

The normal high was 87 degrees, McGee said.

And intense heat is expected again today.

A record is likely, McGee said.

Today’s high could hit 101. The record for July 25 is 96, set in 1987, McGee said. A heat advisory will be in effect from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. today.

And yes, there’s relief in sight. A front is likely to move through the area Sunday night, McGee said, with Monday’s high expected to be about 90.

“We’re under the influence of a really strong high-pressure system that’s over the Carolinas,” McGee said of the ovenlike temperatures.

The heat didn’t stop everyone from outside activity, however.

At the Oceanfront, more than 100 people braved the weather for the Chalk the Walk art competition, between 16th and 18th streets. Many competitors worked in swimsuits, wiping their faces with towels and pressing water bottles to their foreheads.

Mike Hilton, director of marketing for Beachevents, said, “I was afraid the heat would scare people away, but I see a lot of repeat artists. They’ve learned from past years.”

Jay Kurelko, 21, strolled the Boardwalk with a purple slushy drink in one hand and a vanilla ice cream in the other. The Miami resident is visiting for three weeks and said he doesn’t miss the Florida humidity.

Jesse Benton, 16, of Altoona, Pa., has competed in the event for four years. Armed with sunscreen and water, she’d already been out working for three hours. She said an umbrella would have disrupted her work.

“It’s really inconvenient for drawing,” Benton said. “It looks one way under the umbrella, and then in the sun, it looks different.”

Addie Roark, of Virginia Beach, held a blue-and-white umbrella over her artist: her daughter, 13-year-old Courtney. As Courtney drew a blonde girl clad in a green bathing suit listening to an MP3 player, her mom said it was simply common sense to bring an umbrella.

The family moved here a year ago from Sicily, she said, so they’re used to triple-digit temperatures.

“We have the training in the heat,” she joked.

Jennifer Jiggetts, (757) 222-5150, jennifer.jiggetts@pilotonline.com

Shayna Meliker, (757) 446-2326, shayna.meliker@pilotonline.com