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Northeast Regional Climate Center |
July's average temperature in the Northeast was 1.1 degrees below normal and 0.8 degrees cooler than July 2003. Every one of the 12 states in the region reported below normal temperatures, with departures that ranged from 0.4 degrees below normal in Maryland to 1.5 degrees below normal in Massachusetts. The warmest temperatures occurred on the 5th and the 6th in the southern half of the region and during the last days of the month in the northern states. Of the handful of stations that broke the 90 degree threshold, few had more than 2 days in the 90's.
An active weather pattern during the month led to above normal precipitation totals in the Northeast. July's total of 5.67 inches was the wettest since 1996 and the 7th wettest since 1895. All the states but Rhode Island and West Virginia had positive precipitation departures. Rhode Island averaged 89% of normal, while Pennsylvania had 170% of normal precipitation for the month. Pennsylvania's state precipitation average of 7.08 inches made it the 2nd wettest July in 110 years of record. Much of that rain fell on the 12th and the 27th, resulting in flash flooding, not only in Pennsylvania, but throughout the mid-Atlantic states.
There were a few noteworthy weather events this month in addition the flooding mentioned above. A widespread outbreak of large hail occurred on the 1st and 2nd ahead of a cold front that passed through the region. Up to 2 inches of hail covered the ground in parts of Vermont; every state except New Hampshire and West Virginia reported hail damage during this event. The storms that deluged the region on the 12th caused over 50 million dollars in damages in Camden and Burlington Counties, NJ and produced two F1 tornadoes in Cecil County, MD. An F3 tornado destroyed 32 homes and damaged 37 others on the 14th in Lancaster County, PA. Later in the month, a slow moving front produced another bout of heavy rain on the 27th and 28th that put streams and rivers over their banks, flooded roads and basement, and disrupted air and rail transportation throughout the mid-Atlantic states.
Monthly Summary of State Temperature and Precipitation Averages.
