If Saturday in Southwest Florida is hot and dry, the culprit will likely be Tropical Storm Emily's return.

Though battered by the mountains of Haiti on Thursday and stretched out by strong competing winds on Friday, the remnant thunderstorms of Emily still have a shot at organizing into a tropical storm again. If it does, it will likely rob moisture from most of Florida, reducing rain chances here.

Competing winds over the western Atlantic are expected to subside Saturday making it easier for Emily's thunderstorms to resume their counterclockwise circulation. National Hurricane Center forecasters predict high chances for Emily's return today.

The tropical storm brought rain and wind to Haiti on Thursday, but swiftly fizzled out over the nation's high mountains.

Even if Emily regenerates over the Bahamas, it has no chance of threatening Southwest Florida with anything except dry weather as it veers out to sea. If it stays weak, lingering and disorganized thunderstorms could help boost moisture over the state, increasing rain chances.

Minimal rain this past week has allowed temperatures each day in coastal Southwest Florida to rise a degree or two above the normal high of 90 degrees for this time of year, with little relief at night.

"We've seen warmer values because we haven't had as much rain as we've had in previous years. The afternoon thunderstorms are very important for regulating temperature," said Anthony Reynes, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office for Tampa Bay.

Early Thursday morning temperatures at Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport dropped to just 80 degrees, breaking the record high overnight temperature of 79 set in 1958. Average overnight temperatures for this time of year range between 74 and 75.

On Sunday, regardless of Emily's fate, westerly wind flow from the Gulf of Mexico should bring more overall moisture to Southwest Florida, boosting rain chances and cooling temperatures for next week.