First Alert Weather: Rain, some thunder and cooler air arrive Thursday

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ROCHESTER, N.Y. — We made it into the 70s for the 2nd day in a row on Wednesday, but that’ll change on Thursday.

A strong cold front will plow through the area Thursday morning, bringing scattered showers first thing in the morning, with a period of steadier and heavier rain, along with some thunder mid-morning into the early afternoon hours.

Showers will taper later in the afternoon, with some breaks of sun even making a return, but this will also signal the return of cooler air. In fact, the mildest part of Thursday will be the morning, with temperatures falling from the 60s into the 50s by early afternoon.

Winds will also be busy, with some gusts of 25-30 m.p.h. The combination of the rain and breeze will help to take some leaves off the trees, but we’ll still have plenty left hanging on. Friday is mainly dry with a fair amount of sun but highs holding in the 50s.

The best chance of a few showers will be west of Rochester, with some lake rain showers off Lake Erie, including parts of Orleans County. The weekend should start quite nicely, with highs in the upper 60s and a good deal of sun on Saturday.

But you’ll notice a breeze out of the southwest, especially through the first part of the day. Clouds will tend to thicken in the afternoon as another cold front approaches. A few showers are possible with this but mainly overnight and into early Sunday morning.

Any early showers end, and we should see some sun returning, though Sunday will be cooler with highs in the 50s. We’ll likely feel the coldest air of the season next week, with highs in the 40s, lows in the 30s and some lake effect rain and wet snow showers.

The best chance of seeing some of these wet flakes will mainly be in the higher terrain of the western Southern Tier and Finger Lakes. The Bristol Hills may see the first flakes of the season, but it may be tough for the Rochester area.

Still, don’t be surprised if you hear about the first snowflakes of the season in western New York next week.