A familiar summertime pattern will continue across Chattooga County and Northwest Georgia this weekend, with hot and humid afternoons accompanied by scattered showers and thunderstorms.

Saturday will start with some patchy fog before 9 a.m., followed by partly to mostly sunny skies. Temperatures are expected to climb to around 90 degrees, while the combination of heat and humidity could push the heat index into the upper 90s. Scattered thunderstorms are possible during the afternoon and early evening, with rain chances around 30 percent.

The National Weather Service says storms that develop Saturday will generally be the pop-up variety. Gusty winds, frequent lightning and locally heavy rainfall will be the primary concerns. The overall flooding threat is expected to be somewhat lower than during some recent rounds of storms because atmospheric moisture levels are not quite as high.

Conditions become somewhat more favorable for stronger thunderstorms on Sunday as moisture and instability increase across North Georgia. Sunday’s high will reach around 91 degrees, with a 30 percent chance of afternoon thunderstorms. Any stronger storms could produce isolated damaging wind gusts and torrential downpours.

The hot and unsettled pattern is expected to stick around into the new work week. Highs will generally hover near 90 to 91 degrees Monday through Thursday, with afternoon thunderstorm chances increasing from around 40 percent early in the week to 60 percent by Wednesday and Thursday.

Humidity will also become increasingly noticeable. Heat index readings could approach or exceed 100 degrees in portions of the region by the middle of the week as temperatures and dew points rise.

While thunderstorms may provide temporary relief from the afternoon heat, forecasters expect daily opportunities for storms for the foreseeable future. No widespread severe-weather signal is apparent for next week at this time, although stronger storms will remain possible depending on how much daytime heating occurs.