Christmas brings warmth to East – and not just from a holiday glow

Forecasters expect the low temperature will range from 46 to 50 degrees. In fact, temperatures are forecast as high as 59 degrees Fahrenheit in Toronto and 75 degrees in Washington.

“It appears high temperatures will be in the 70s on Christmas Eve in New York City, which is about 35 degrees above normal for the date”, AccuWeather Meteorologist Bill Deger said.

For example, a record high temperature was set at Georgetown, Delaware as of 1:29 a.m. ET this morning when the temperature hit 72 degrees Fahrenheit, smashing the old record of 68, set in 2013.

Sunday: According to the National Weather Service, there’s a 40 percent chance of rain.

Forecast high temperatures for December 24, 2015, with circles indicating weather stations that may set or tie high temperature records.

Philadelphia has already hit 70 Thursday, breaking its record.

The record highest average temperature and the record for the highest low temperature for December 24 in Poughkeepsie are 48.5 degrees, set in 2003, and 42 degrees, set in 2014. Thursday’s record is one of several set in the past two months, with 66 degrees recorded in Central Park on December 13.

On Wednesday, as this historically warm and humid air collided with a cold front ejecting out of the Plains, severe weather erupted in the South. Twenty-nine tornadoes were reported in six states, and there were 10 storm-related fatalities, including six in Mississippi.

New Yorkers doing some last-minute shopping on Christmas Eve left their winter coats at home Thursday as temperatures soared to record highs.

Record heat is forecast for most of the East Coast just in time for Christmas.

The cold front will meet strong resistance from the forceful push of tropical air, meaning the mid-Atlantic will remain unseasonably mild through the holiday weekend.

These records and more will ensure that the total number of warm temperature records in the USA for the month of December reach close to the astonishing figure of 7,000, compared to barely 1,000 for cold temperature records, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information in Asheville, North Carolina.