FIRST ALERT: Tracking extreme and record heat Thursday-Sunday

An unseasonable ridge of pressure will lead to a big heat wave across the Desert Southwest, bringing in extreme heat, and we are also expected to shatter daily and monthly record temperatures for multiple days in a row.

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA-TV)- It's looking to be the hottest St. Patrick's Day compared to the last 7 years.

Take a look at the high temperatures recorded from the previous years.

Happy St. Patrick's Day! It's a toasty one for sure! El Centro broke a new daily record WARM LOW this morning! Take a look.

As mentioned, today is looking to be the hottest St. Paddy's Day in the last 7 years. No record highs were broken today, but both Yuma and El Centro reached 99 degrees this afternoon, which is 18 degrees above average. Tracking hotter and record temperatures for the rest of the week.

For the rest of our St. Paddy's Day, it will still be pretty warm as temperatures will be staying in the 90s through 7pm. We will see a few clouds, but it will be nice and dry with light winds. Enjoy the rest of your holiday!

A very strong ridge of high pressure will take over the Desert Southwest by the middle of the week, heating up our temperatures. We will have temperatures trending 20-30 degrees above-average with record temperatures for the next several days.

A Weather Authority First Alert is in place through Wednesday to prepare for hotter temperatures. Then we will transition into a Weather Authority First Alert ACTION Day Thursday-Sunday because that's when we will need to take ACTION from the heat.

An Extreme Heat WARNING is issued for 11 a.m. Thursday- 8 p.m. Sunday for the entire Desert Southwest for moderate and major heat risks. Highs will be trending between 103-109 degrees.

It's not even spring yet and we have summer-like temperatures for the rest of the week and through the weekend.

Daytime highs and overnight lows are going to rise as the week continues, and I am watching for multiple days where record-breaking temperatures are going to be very likely.

A Weather Authority First Alert Action Day will also go into effect later this week and through the weekend due to the hot and unseasonable weather.

A historic March heat wave is on tap for the later half of this week and this weekend. Not only will daily temperature records be shattered, but so will monthly records. Here are some other statistics to put this historic heat wave into perspective. Take a look the stats and graphics from the National Weather Service Phoenix.