A Cool, Showery April
April average temperatures were as much as 6°F below normal.
The Northeast experienced a chilly April, with average temperatures ranging from 6°F below normal to near normal. All but one of the 35 major climate sites experienced a colder-than-normal April, with average temperatures ranging from 4.1°F below normal in Binghamton, NY, to 0.7°F below normal in Baltimore, MD. In fact, this April ranked among the 20 coldest Aprils on record for eight of the sites. Allentown, PA, was the lone warmer-than-normal site at 0.6°F above normal.
All but one of the major climate sites saw a colder-than-normal April.
April precipitation ranged from 50% of normal to more than 200% of normal.
April showers were plentiful for parts of the region, particularly West Virginia, southwestern Pennsylvania, central Maryland, and the higher elevations of central New Hampshire, which all saw more than 200% of normal precipitation. Twenty-nine of the region’s 35 major climate sites were wetter than normal with 15 of them ranking this April among their 20 wettest on record. However, northern New Jersey, portions of New York, northern Vermont, and western Maine landed on the dry side of normal for April, seeing less than 75% of normal. Only five of the major climate sites were drier than normal. Overall, precipitation in the Northeast ranged from 50% of normal to more than 200% of normal, while precipitation at the major climate sites ranged from 65% of normal in Burlington, VT, to 206% of normal in Washington, D.C.
Fifteen major climate sites ranked this April among their 20 wettest on record.
April snowfall ranged from 6 inches below normal to more than 6 inches above normal.
April snowfall varied. The greatest deficits of 6 inches were found in northern New York and northwestern Vermont, while the greatest surpluses of more than 6 inches were found in Maine, northern New Hampshire, southwestern New York, and northern Pennsylvania. At the major climate sites, April snowfall ranged from 4.5 inches below normal in Elkins, WV, and Burlington, VT, to 14.5 inches above normal in Caribou, ME. Twenty-three of the 35 major climate sites saw below-normal snowfall, with Burlington, VT, having its 16th least snowy April on record. On the other end of the spectrum, four of the nine snowier-than-normal sites ranked this April among their 20 snowiest Aprils on record.
While a majority of the major climate sites saw below-normal snowfall, four sites ranked this April among their 20 snowiest on record.
April also featured some interesting weather. A storm system produced severe weather in southern areas and heavy snow in northern areas between April 7 and 10. A couple of days later, from April 12 to 13, another storm system brought damaging wind gusts of up to 82 mph to the region. Two weak tornadoes also touched down in central Maryland. Lastly, on April 21, parts of New Jersey saw damaging thunderstorm winds and several waterspouts, one of which moved onshore.
May is expected to be cooler than normal for much of the Northeast and wetter than normal for eastern areas. Click to enlarge.
NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center indicates that below-normal temperatures are favored for May for a majority of the Northeast, with the exception being areas closest to the Atlantic coast. There’s a tilt towards wetter-than-normal conditions for the eastern half of the region for May, with equal chances of below-, near-, or above-normal precipitation for the rest of the region.