March: More Lion Than Lamb
The first month of spring felt like a continuation of winter.
The first month of spring did not feel very spring-like for most of the Northeast. Temperatures were generally from 2 degrees F to more than 6 degrees F colder than normal. Twenty of the 35 major Northeast airport climate sites ranked the month among their top 20 coldest Marches on record.
While New England and New York were quite dry, West Virginia and parts of Pennsylvania were quite wet.
Precipitation varied widely across the region. Parts of New York and New England saw less than 50 percent of normal precipitation, while parts of Pennsylvania and West Virginia saw up to 200 percent of normal. Overall, the month ranked among the top 20 driest Marches at 9 sites and among the top 20 wettest at 11 sites. Snowfall departures generally ranged from more than a foot below normal to more than a foot above normal. Twenty-three sites were snowier than normal, with 15 sites having top 20 snowy Marches. In fact, Islip, NY, had its snowiest March on record.