2008 Summary

...THE 2008 WEATHER YEAR IN REVIEW FOR FORT WAYNE...

...JANUARY...

THE YEAR BEGAN WHERE 2007 LEFT OFF WITH A ROLLER COASTER RIDE AND A
PLETHORA OF WEATHER EVENTS. THE WEATHER VARIETY INCLUDED HEAVY
SNOW...HEAVY RAIN...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...RECORD RIVER
FLOODING...RECORD WARMTH AND EVEN BELOW ZERO TEMPERATURES ACROSS
PARTS OF NORTHERN INDIANA...NORTHWEST OHIO AND LOWER MICHIGAN.

THE NEW YEAR BEGAN AS A POWERFUL AND IMPRESSIVE WINTER STORM MOVED
THROUGH THE GREAT LAKES AND OHIO VALLEY AND DUMPED UP TO 2 FEET OF
SNOW ACROSS PARTS OF NORTHWEST INDIANA AND SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN
BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND OF THE MONTH. THE FORT WAYNE AREA WAS
SPARED THIS HEAVY SNOW WITH ONLY BETWEEN 2 AND 4 INCHES FALLING IN
THE AREA. SNOWFALL AMOUNTS INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY FURTHER NORTH AND
WEST OF FORT WAYNE. HUDSON LAKE IN NORTHWEST INDIANA REPORTED THE
GREATEST SNOWFALL TOTAL FOR THE ENTIRE EVENT WITH AN IMPRESSIVE 26
INCHES.

THIS HEAVY SNOW WAS FOLLOWED BY A BRIEF PERIOD OF ARCTIC AIR AND LOW
TEMPERATURES IN THE SINGLE DIGITS. HOWEVER...BY THE 6TH...7TH AND 8TH OF
JANUARY...RECORD WARM TEMPERATURES IN THE 60S WERE OCCURRING ACROSS
MOST OF THE REGION. THIS INCREDIBLE WARMUP WAS ALSO ACCOMPANIED BY
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND VERY HEAVY RAINFALL.
BETWEEN 1 AND 6 INCHES OF RAINFALL OCCURRED FROM THESE THUNDERSTORMS
OVER NORTHERN INDIANA...WITH THE HEAVIEST AMOUNTS FALLING IN THE
KANKAKEE...TIPPECANOE AND WABASH RIVER BASINS. THE HEAVY RAIN
COUPLED WITH THE RAPIDLY MELTING SNOWPACK IN NORTH CENTRAL AND
NORTHWEST OHIO LED TO RECORD FLOODING ACROSS PARTS OF NORTHERN
INDIANA. AS A MATTER OF FACT...THE NWS NORTHERN INDIANA OFFICE HAD
31 RIVER GAUGE LOCATIONS ABOVE FLOOD STAGE. RECORD FLOODING WAS
REPORTED AT 3 LOCATIONS...TIPPECANOE RIVER AT ORA WHICH REACHED
15.63 FEET...BEAN CREEK AT POWERS WHICH REACHED 18.87 FEET...AND
PIGEON RIVER AT SCOTT WHICH REACHED 7.32 FEET. FLOODING ALONG THE
TIPPECANOE RIVER WAS ESPECIALLY SIGNIFICANT NEAR MONTICELLO WHERE
NUMEROUS HOMES WERE EVACUATED DUE TO THE HIGH WATER.

TEMPERATURES REMAINED ABOVE NORMAL THROUGH THE 17TH WITH OCCASIONAL
LIGHT SNOW AND LIGHT RAIN EVENTS. A STRONG COLD FRONT BROUGHT VERY
COLD ARCTIC AIR TO THE AREA FROM THE 18TH THROUGH THE 25TH. HIGH
TEMPERATURES DURING THIS PERIOD WERE MAINLY IN THE TEENS AND 20S
WHILE LOW TEMPERATURES DROPPED TO THE SINGLE DIGITS ABOVE AND BELOW
ZERO. THE COLDEST MORNING OF THE MONTH WAS ON JANUARY 25TH WHEN LOW
TEMPERATURES WERE BETWEEN ZERO AND MINUS 10 DEGREES AT LOCAL CLIMATE
DATA SITES. GOSHEN INDIANA RECORDED ONE OF THE LOWEST TEMPERATURES
WITH 9 DEGREES BELOW ZERO.

A COUPLE OF DAYS WITH NORMAL TO ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES OCCURRED
BETWEEN THE 26TH AND 29TH. HIGH TEMPERATURES ON THE 29TH REACHED
THE LOWER 50S IN MANY AREAS BUT AN EXTREME ARCTIC COLD FRONT
BROUGHT A LINE OF INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS FOLLOWED BY ONE OF THE MOST
EXTREME TEMPERATURE DROPS THIS AREA HAS EVER SEEN. DURING THE
EVENING OF THE 29TH...THUNDERSTORMS WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND HEAVY
RAIN POUNDED NORTHERN INDIANA...NORTHWEST OHIO AND SOUTHERN LOWER
MICHIGAN. IMMEDIATELY BEHIND THESE STORMS...AN ARCTIC COLD FRONT
SWEPT THROUGH THE AREA WITH 50 TO 70 MPH WINDS. NUMEROUS TREES WERE
BLOWN DOWN AND SOME BUILDINGS SUSTAINED DAMAGE. AN INCREDIBLE 50
DEGREE TEMPERATURE DROP OCCURRED OVERNIGHT AS MORNING LOW
TEMPERATURES ON THE 30TH WERE NEAR ZERO FOLLOWING TEMPERATURES
AROUND 50 THE PREVIOUS EVENING.


...FEBRUARY...

...SNOWIEST FEBRUARY ON RECORD FOR FORT WAYNE...

FEBRUARY CONTINUED A TREND OF ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION AND A
ROLLER COASTER RIDE WITH TEMPERATURES AND PRECIPITATION TYPE.
SIGNIFICANT AND IN SOME CASES RECORD FLOODING OCCURRED FOR THE
SECOND STRAIGHT MONTH. AREAS DEVASTATED BY FLOODING IN JANUARY WERE
AGAIN HIT HARD BY RISING WATERS IN FEBRUARY. THIS PATTERN OF
RAIN...SNOW...WARM AND COLD THAT BEGAN IN DECEMBER CONTINUED THROUGH
FEBRUARY AND WAS FUELED BY A STRONG LA NINA IN THE EQUATORIAL
PACIFIC OCEAN.

FEBRUARY WAS A VERY WET MONTH WITH LITTLE SUNSHINE. AT FORT
WAYNE...THE FIRST 13 DAYS OF FEBRUARY HAD AT LEAST A TRACE OF
PRECIPITATION...AND 26 OUT OF 29 DAYS HAD AT LEAST A TRACE OF
SNOWFALL. MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED ON 19 OF THE 29
DAYS. THIS RANKS AS THE 4TH WETTEST FEBRUARY WITH 4.73 INCHES.

SNOWFALL WAS WELL ABOVE NORMAL WITH 19.0 INCHES RECORDED...11.4
INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS RANKS AS THE SNOWIEST FEBRUARY ON RECORD
AT FORT WAYNE. THE PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 17.6 INCHES SET IN 1912.
MEASURABLE SNOW FELL ON 16 DAYS.

THE ALTERNATING PATTERN BETWEEN COLD AND SNOWY WEATHER TO MILD AND
RAINY WEATHER CONTINUED THROUGH FEBRUARY. THIS PATTERN COMBINED
MELTING SNOW AND HEAVY RAINFALL TO PRODUCE SEVERAL BOUTS OF
WIDESPREAD FLOODING ACROSS THE REGION. MANY HOMES AND BUSINESSES
REPORTED FLOODING PROBLEMS WHERE THEY HAVE NEVER HAD IT BEFORE.
STREAMS...CREEKS AND RIVERS CREATED FLOODING NIGHTMARES AND CAUSED
EVACUATIONS FOR THE SECOND STRAIGHT MONTH IN MANY LOCATIONS
ESPECIALLY ALONG THE TIPPECANOE...KANKAKEE...ELKHART AND ST. JOSEPH
RIVERS IN NORTHERN INDIANA.

FEBRUARY ENDED UP BEING COLDER THAN NORMAL AT MOST LOCATIONS. FORT
WAYNE HAD AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 24.8...WHICH IS 2.5 DEGREES
BELOW NORMAL.


...MARCH....

WINTER REFUSED TO GIVE UP ITS GRIP ACROSS NORTHEAST
INDIANA...DESPITE MARCH REPRESENTING BOTH THE METEOROLOGICAL AND
ASTRONOMICAL BEGINNING OF SPRING. THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE
WAS BELOW NORMAL WHILE PRECIPITATION AND SNOWFALL WERE ABOVE NORMAL.

THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR MARCH AT FORT WAYNE WAS 2.5 DEGREES
BELOW NORMAL AT 35.6 DEGREES. THERE WERE 4 DAYS WHERE THE MAX
TEMPERATURE FAILED TO CLIMB ABOVE 32 DEGREES AND 26 DAYS WHERE THE
LOW TEMPERATURE WAS AT OR BELOW FREEZING. THERE WERE 22 DAYS WITH AN
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE BELOW NORMAL...BUT ONLY 4 DAYS HAD AN AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE OF 10 DEGREES OR MORE BELOW NORMAL. THE WARMEST DAY OF
THE MONTH WAS THE LAST DAY WHEN THE HIGH TEMPERATURE FINALLY TOPPED
THE 60 DEGREE MARK FOR THE FIRST TIME DURING THE MONTH. THE HIGH
TEMPERATURE REACHED 62 DEGREES...WHICH WAS ALSO THE FIRST 60 DEGREE
TEMPERATURE SINCE JANUARY 7TH WHEN THE HIGH WAS 66 DEGREES.

PRECIPITATION AND SNOWFALL CONTINUED THE TREND OF THE WINTER AND
WERE ONCE AGAIN ABOVE NORMAL. TOTAL PRECIPITATION WAS 3.82
INCHES...0.96 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. THERE WAS 6.3 INCHES OF
SNOWFALL...1.6 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. DESPITE BEING ABOVE NORMAL FOR
PRECIPITATION AND SNOWFALL...THIS MONTH DID NOT REACH THE TOP TEN
SNOWIEST OR WETTEST.

THE STRONG LA NINA IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN CONTINUED TO HELP DEVELOP
STRONG STORMS SYSTEMS WITH ABUNDANT MOISTURE. THE STORM TRACKS FOR
THESE SYSTEMS WERE GENERALLY THROUGH THE OHIO VALLEY WHICH KEPT
NORTHERN INDIANA ON THE COLDER SIDE OF THE LOW. THIS CONTRIBUTED TO
KEEPING THE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE BELOW NORMAL AND PRECIPITATION AND
SNOWFALL ABOVE NORMAL.

WITH THE COLDER TEMPERATURES AND STORM TRACKS TO OUR SOUTH...SEVERE
WEATHER WAS NOT ABLE TO DEVELOP DUE TO THE LACK OF WARMTH AND
INSTABILITY. NO SEVERE WARNINGS WERE ISSUED FOR MARCH.
HOWEVER...SEVERAL WINTER STORM WARNINGS AND WINTER WEATHER
ADVISORIES WERE ISSUED. THERE WERE PERIODS OF HEAVY SNOW...FREEZING
RAIN AND SLEET DURING THE MONTH. THE GREATEST SNOWFALL OCCURRED ON
THE 4TH AND 5TH WHEN 5.1 INCHES OF SNOW WAS RECORDED.


...APRIL...

AFTER WHAT HAD BEEN A RELATIVELY COOL AND DAMP SPRING...APRIL TURNED
OUT TO BE A RELATIVELY WARM AND DRY MONTH ACROSS SOUTHWEST LOWER
MICHIGAN...NORTHWEST OHIO...AND NORTHERN INDIANA.

THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE AT FORT WAYNE WAS 51.0 DEGREES...2.0
DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THE MERCURY FINALLY HIT THE 70 DEGREE MARK FOR
THE FIRST TIME IN 2008 ON APRIL 7TH WHEN THE HIGH WAS EXACTLY 70.
THIS MARK WAS REACHED OR EXCEEDED ON 10 DAYS. APRIL 25TH ALSO MARKED
THE FIRST DAY OF THE YEAR THE TEMPERATURE REACHED 80 DEGREES...WITH
A HIGH OF 81. THIS WAS THE ONLY 80 DEGREE DAY IN APRIL. APRIL ALSO
HAD A FEW COLD NIGHTS. THE LOWEST MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OCCURRED ON
APRIL 2 WHEN THE LOW REACHED 26. A RECORD LOW TEMPERATURE WAS SET
FOR APRIL 30TH WHEN A LOW OF 29 BROKE THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 30
WHICH WAS LAST SET IN 1958. FROST ADVISORIES AND FREEZE WARNINGS
WERE IN EFFECT FOR THIS NIGHT AS THE WARM MONTH ALLOWED MANY PLANTS
AND TREES TO BLOOM.

MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION FELL ON 14 OUT OF 30 DAYS. A TOTAL OF 1.98
INCHES OF PRECIPITATION OCCURRED...1.56 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THE
GREATEST CALENDAR DAY PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED ON APRIL 10TH WITH
0.58 INCHES OF RAINFALL. THE GREATEST 24 HOUR PRECIPITATION
OCCURRED ON APRIL 10TH AND 11TH WHEN A TOTAL OF 0.75 INCHES OF RAIN
WAS RECORDED. SNOWFALL FOR THE MONTH WAS ONLY A TRACE...WHICH
OCCURRED ON APRIL 13TH. NORMAL SNOWFALL FOR APRIL IS 1.1 INCHES. THE
SEASONAL SNOWFALL ENDED AT 43.9 INCHES...8.8 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL AND
14.8 INCHES HIGHER THAN THE SNOWFALL TOTAL FOR 2007.


...MAY...

MAY WAS A RATHER TRANQUIL...COOL AND WET MONTH AT FORT WAYNE. THE
AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE WAS 57.5 DEGREES...2.9 DEGREES BELOW
NORMAL. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE WAS 83 DEGREES ON THE 26TH AND
30TH...AND THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE WAS 37 ON THE 4TH. 21 DAYS HAD AN
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE BELOW NORMAL WHILE ONLY ONE DAY DURING THE MONTH
WAS MORE THAN 10 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL...AND THAT WAS ON MAY 2ND. IN
CONTRAST...THERE WERE 5 DAYS WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 10 OR
MORE DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.

PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS 4.95 INCHES...1.20 INCHES ABOVE
NORMAL. MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON 18 DAYS...WITH THE MOST
PRECIPITATION OCCURRING ON MAY 30TH WHEN 1.81 INCHES OF RAIN FELL.
THERE WAS NO SNOWFALL RECORDED DURING THE MONTH.

THE FIRST TORNADOES OF THE SEASON OCCURRED ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL
INDIANA AND NORTHWEST OHIO IN MAY. TORNADOES OF EF0 AND EF1
INTENSITY OCCURRED ON MAY 30TH ACROSS WABASH COUNTY. ON MAY
31ST...AN EF0 TORNADO MOVED FROM ADAMS COUNTY INDIANA INTO VAN WERT
COUNTY OHIO. AN EF1 TORNADO ALSO OCCURRED IN PUTNAM COUNTY OHIO ON
THE 31ST.


...JUNE...

JUNE WAS ANOTHER TRANQUIL MONTH IN GENERAL AT FORT WAYNE...WITH
TEMPERATURES JUST ABOVE NORMAL AND ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION.  THE
AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE WAS 71.0 DEGREES...1.3 DEGREES ABOVE
NORMAL. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE WAS 91 DEGREES ON THE 6TH...AND THE
LOWEST TEMPERATURE WAS 51 ON THE 17TH. THE FIRST 15 DAYS OF JUNE HAD
AVERAGE TEMPERATURES AT OR ABOVE NORMAL WHILE 12 OF THE LAST 15 DAYS
WERE BELOW NORMAL. THERE WERE 2 DAYS IN JUNE WITH HIGH TEMPERATURES
OF 90 DEGREES OR HIGHER.

THERE WAS A RECORD WARM MINIMUM TEMPERATURE IN JUNE. ON JUNE 8TH...
THE LOW TEMPERATURE WAS 74 DEGREES. THIS BROKE THE PREVIOUS RECORD
OF 73 DEGREES WHICH WAS SET IN 1984.

PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS 5.55 INCHES...1.51 INCHES ABOVE
NORMAL. MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON 17 DAYS...WITH THE MOST
PRECIPITATION OCCURRING ON THE 25TH WHEN 1.08 INCHES OF RAIN FELL.
A HALF INCH OR MORE OF PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED ON 3 DIFFERENT
DAYS.

TWO MORE TORNADOES OCCURRED IN JUNE ACROSS EAST CENTRAL INDIANA AND
NORTHWEST OHIO...BOTH OCCURRING ON JUNE 6TH. AN EF1 TORNADO OCCURRED
IN GRANT COUNTY INDIANA WHILE A SECOND EF1 TORNADO OCCURRED IN VAN
WERT COUNTY OHIO.


...JULY...

JULY WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR LITTLE...EXCEPT FOR A SLIGHT DRY SPELL
IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE MONTH. TEMPERATURES ENDED THE MONTH VERY
SLIGHTLY BELOW AVERAGE...WITH BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION. THE
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS 73.2 DEGREES WHICH IS 0.2 DEGREES BELOW
NORMAL. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE WAS 89 DEGREES RECORDED ON BOTH
THE 18TH AND THE 31ST OF THE MONTH...WITH THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE OF
50 DEGREES RECORDED ON THE 1ST. NO DAYS WERE AT OR ABOVE 90. ON
AVERAGE 6 OR 7 DAYS USUALLY REACH OR TOP 90 DEGREES IN THE MONTH OF
JULY.

PRECIPITATION WAS 3.15 INCHES...0.43 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. MEASURABLE
PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON 10 DAYS WITH 6 DAYS CONSECUTIVELY
RECORDING EITHER A TRACE OR MORE FROM THE 8TH THROUGH THE 13...AND 4
DAYS CONSECUTIVELY RECORDING MEASURABLE RAINFALL FROM THE 19TH TO
THE 22ND. THE MOST PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON THE 8TH WHEN 1.44
INCHES OF RAIN FELL. A QUARTER INCH OR MORE OF PRECIPITATION WAS
RECORDED ON 5 DAYS...WITH ONLY .01 OF AN INCH RECORDED FROM THE 23RD
THROUGH THE 31ST.

THE FINAL TORNADO OF THE YEAR FOR THE COUNTY WARNING AREA OF THE
NORTHERN INDIANA OFFICE OCCURRED ON JULY 8TH. AN EF0 TORNADO
OCCURRED IN WHITLEY COUNTY INDIANA NEAR THE ALLEN COUNTY LINE. THERE
WERE NO TORNADOES RECORDED FOR 2008 IN THE MICHIGAN COUNTIES COVERED
BY THE NWS NORTHERN INDIANA OFFICE.


...AUGUST...

THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR AUGUST WAS NEAR NORMAL WHILE TOTAL
PRECIPITATION WAS BELOW NORMAL. THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS 71.1
DEGREES WHICH IS EXACTLY NORMAL. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE WAS
91 DEGREES RECORDED ON THE 23RD...WHICH WAS THE ONLY DAY THIS MONTH
WITH A RECORDED HIGH AT OR ABOVE 90 DEGREES. THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE
OF 52 DEGREES WAS RECORDED ON THE 26TH. AVERAGE TEMPERATURES WERE
BELOW NORMAL FROM THE 8TH THROUGH THE 17TH.

TOTAL PRECIPITATION WAS 2.06 INCHES...WHICH IS 1.54 INCHES BELOW
NORMAL. MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON 8 DAYS. THE MOST
PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON THE 5TH WHEN 0.60 INCHES OF RAIN FELL. A
HALF INCH OR MORE OF PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED ONLY ON 1 DAY...THE
5TH.

THE SUMMER SEASON AT FORT WAYNE ENDED ON THE DRY SIDE...BUT NOT NEAR
AS DRY AS OTHER PARTS OF NORTHERN INDIANA. UNLIKE OTHER PARTS OF
NORTHERN INDIANA...THE FORT WAYNE AREA EXPERIENCED ABOVE NORMAL
RAINFALL DURING THE SPRING AND THAT CONTINUED INTO THE EARLY SUMMER.
HOWEVER...IT BECAME PROGRESSIVELY DRIER IN JULY AND AUGUST. AS A
RESULT OF THIS STRETCH OF DRY WEATHER IN LATE JULY AND
AUGUST...NORTHERN INDIANA WAS PLACED IN THE D0 DROUGHT CATEGORY
WHICH SIGNIFIES ABNORMALLY DRY CONDITIONS.


...SEPTEMBER...

...SEPTEMBER WAS RELATIVELY WARM WITH BELOW NORMAL RAINFALL...

WHILE OTHER PARTS OF INDIANA EXPERIENCED RECORD RAINFALL FOR THE
MONTH OF SEPTEMBER...FORT WAYNE MISSED MOST OF THE HEAVY RAINFALL
FROM THE REMNANTS OF TROPICAL STORM LOWELL AND HURRICANE IKE.
HOWEVER...THESE SYSTEMS DID BRING SOME RAIN TO THE FORT WAYNE
AREA...ABOUT 1.37 INCHES FROM SEPTEMBER 12TH THROUGH THE 14TH. THIS
ACCOUNTED FOR ABOUT 75 PERCENT OF THE MONTHLY RAINFALL TOTAL...
WHICH WAS 1.83 INCHES. THIS IS 0.98 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THERE WAS
NO RAINFALL AT FORT WAYNE FROM THE 16TH THROUGH THE 28TH. THIS WAS
THE THIRD STRAIGHT MONTH WITH BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION AT FORT
WAYNE.

THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE WAS 67.3 DEGREES...3.2 DEGREES ABOVE
NORMAL. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE OF THE YEAR OCCURRED ON THE 2ND WHEN
THE HIGH REACHED 94 DEGREES. THE HIGH TEMPERATURE REACH 90 DEGREES
OR WARMER ON THE FIRST 3 DAYS OF THE MONTH. THE LOW TEMPERATURE FOR
SEPTEMBER WAS 47 WHICH OCCURRED ON THE 11TH AND 19TH.


...OCTOBER...

TEMPERATURES AND PRECIPITATION WERE ABOUT NORMAL FOR THE MONTH OF
OCTOBER AT FORT WAYNE. THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS 52.0 DEGREES
WHICH IS 0.4 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS
2.32 INCHES...0.31 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THERE WAS ALSO A TRACE OF
SNOWFALL ON THE 27TH.

OCTOBER HAD 17 DAYS WITH THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE BELOW NORMAL AND 14
DAYS WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE ABOVE NORMAL. IT WAS ESPECIALLY
WARM FROM THE 6TH THROUGH THE 15TH...WITH HIGHS IN THE 70S AND 80S
DURING THIS PERIOD. THE 11TH...12TH AND 13TH HAD HIGH TEMPERATURES
OF 85...87 AND 83. THE 87 DEGREES ON OCTOBER 12TH WAS THE WARMEST
TEMPERATURE OF THE MONTH AND ALSO SET A NEW RECORD FOR THAT
DATE...BREAKING THE OLD RECORD OF 83 SET IN 1995. THE COLDEST PART
OF OCTOBER 2008 OCCURRED FROM THE 27TH TO THE 30TH...WHEN HIGHS WERE
ONLY IN THE 40S AND 50S. LOWS RANGED FROM THE MIDDLE 20S TO LOWER
30S. THE COLDEST TEMPERATURE OF THE MONTH WAS 25 WHICH OCCURRED ON
THE MORNING OF THE 30TH.

THERE WERE ALSO TWO NEW RECORDS SET FOR DAILY RAINFALL AT FORT WAYNE
DURING THE MONTH OF OCTOBER. ON OCTOBER 15TH...0.88 INCHES OF RAIN
FELL...BREAKING THE OLD RECORD OF 0.61 SET IN 1914. ON OCTOBER
24TH...0.97 INCHES OF RAIN FELL. THIS BROKE THE OLD RECORD OF 0.50
INCHES SET ON THIS DATE IN 1955.


...NOVEMBER...

WHILE NOVEMBER BEGAN VERY WARM...CONDITIONS QUICKLY CHANGED AND MUCH
OF THE MIDDLE AND LATTER PART OF THE MONTH WAS COOLER THAN NORMAL. A
LARGE PART OF THE PRECIPITATION THAT FELL IN NOVEMBER OCCURRED OVER
JUST A FEW DAYS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MONTH BETWEEN THE 11TH AND
15TH.

PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER WAS 2.03 INCHES...WHICH IS
0.95 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON 11
DAYS. OVER AN INCH AND A HALF OF THE PRECIPITATION FELL BETWEEN
NOVEMBER 11TH AND 15TH. SNOWFALL FOR THE MONTH WAS 2.3
INCHES...WHICH IS 0.7 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. MEASURABLE SNOWFALL
OCCURRED ON 4 DAYS.

WHILE THIS MONTH WILL BE REMEMBERED AS GENERALLY COLD...IT BEGAN ON
A VERY WARM NOTE. FORT WAYNE RECORDED 4 STRAIGHT DAYS OF HIGH
TEMPERATURES ABOVE 70 FROM THE 3RD THROUGH THE 6TH. THE FIRST 7 DAYS
OF THE MONTH ALL HAD AVERAGE TEMPERATURES ABOVE NORMAL AND HIGH
TEMPERATURES ABOVE 64 DEGREES. THIS WARM WEATHER QUICKLY ENDED THOUGH
AS HIGH TEMPERATURES WERE ONLY IN THE 30S BY THE 9TH AND A TRACE OF
SNOWFALL WAS RECORDED ON THE 9TH.

THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE WAS 39.3 DEGREES...1.3 DEGREES BELOW
NORMAL. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 74 ON THE 6TH
WHILE THE COLDEST TEMPERATURE WAS 14 ON THE 23RD. A RECORD HIGH
TEMPERATURE WAS TIED ON NOVEMBER 5TH WHEN THE HIGH WAS 73 DEGREES.


...DECEMBER...

DECEMBER ENDED THE YEAR OF 2008 IN A SIMILAR WAY THAT IT BEGAN...IN
A VERY ACTIVE AND COLD PATTERN. DECEMBER WAS A RATHER COLD MONTH
WITH AN ACTIVE STORM PATTERN THAT BROUGHT NUMEROUS WEATHER SYSTEMS
AND A VARIETY OF WEATHER TO THE REGION. THE AREA EXPERIENCED SEVERAL
LIGHT SNOW EVENTS...HEAVY RAIN...SLEET...FREEZING RAIN...ICE
ACCUMULATIONS...LOW TEMPERATURES BELOW ZERO AND EVEN RECORD HIGH
TEMPERATURES IN THE MIDDLE 60S.

THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE AT FORT WAYNE FOR DECEMBER WAS 1.4 DEGREES
BELOW NORMAL. THE RANGE OF TEMPERATURES DURING THE MONTH WAS RATHER
SPECTACULAR WITH A RECORD HIGH OF 65 ON THE 27TH AND A LOW
TEMPERATURE OF NEGATIVE 2 ONLY 6 DAYS EARLIER ON THE 21ST.

PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS ABOVE NORMAL...WITH 4.34 INCHES.
THIS WAS ABOVE NORMAL BY 1.57 INCHES. DESPITE THE BELOW NORMAL
TEMPERATURES AND ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION...MONTHLY SNOWFALL WAS
BELOW NORMAL. 4.2 INCHES OF SNOWFALL WAS RECORDED...4.1 INCHES BELOW
THE NORMAL OF 8.3 INCHES. A MAIN REASON FOR THIS WAS A HEAVY RAIN
EVENT IN EARLY DECEMBER WHEN 0.82 INCHES OF RAIN WAS RECORDED ON THE
9TH AND 1.07 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED ON THE
19TH...WHICH FELL AS A COMBINATION OF SLEET AND FREEZING RAIN. THESE
RAIN EVENTS LED TO HIGH PRECIPITATION AMOUNTS BUT LOWER SNOWFALL
TOTALS.

ONE OF THE MANY WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MONTH INCLUDED A SLEET AND
ICE STORM THAT OCCURRED ON THE 19TH. A MIX OF SLEET AND BETWEEN ONE
QUARTER AND ONE HALF INCH OF ICE ACCUMULATION FROM FREEZING RAIN
CREATED TREACHEROUS CONDITIONS AROUND THE FORT WAYNE AREA. WIDESPREAD
POWER OUTAGES AND ACCIDENTS WERE REPORTED FROM THIS WINTER STORM.
THESE HARSH CONDITIONS WERE THEN FOLLOWED BY BITTERLY COLD ARCTIC
AIR ON THE 21ST. WIND CHILLS DIPPED TO AROUND 30 DEGREES BELOW ZERO
ON THE 21ST...WITH ACTUAL AIR TEMPERATURES FALLING BELOW ZERO DURING
THE DAY. THIS PROMPTED WIND CHILL WARNINGS FOR THE AREA INTO THE
22ND. MANY PEOPLE REMAINED WITHOUT POWER DURING THIS FRIGID PERIOD.

THE COLD ARTIC AIR WAS SHORT LIVED AND RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURES IN
THE MIDDLE 60S FOLLOWED BY SATURDAY THE 27TH. A COLD FRONT MOVED
THROUGH THE REGION ON SUNDAY THE 28TH AND WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR
GENERATING SEVERAL LINES OF INTENSE RAIN SHOWERS AND ISOLATED SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS. SEVERAL SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNINGS WERE ISSUED
ACROSS NORTHERN INDIANA AND A FEW DAMAGE REPORTS WERE RECEIVED.

CLIMATE RECORDS AND INFORMATION AS WELL AS INTERESTING STORIES ON
PAST WEATHER EVENTS CAN BE FOUND ON THE NWS NORTHERN INDIANA WEBSITE
AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/IWX. JUST CLICK ON THE CLIMATE LINK AT THE TOP OF
THE PAGE.

$$
LASHLEY

...THE 2008 WEATHER YEAR IN REVIEW FOR SOUTH BEND...

...JANUARY...

THE YEAR BEGAN WHERE 2007 LEFT OFF WITH A ROLLER COASTER RIDE AND A
PLETHORA OF WEATHER EVENTS. THE WEATHER VARIETY INCLUDED HEAVY
SNOW...HEAVY RAIN...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...RECORD RIVER
FLOODING...RECORD WARMTH AND EVEN BELOW ZERO TEMPERATURES.

2008 BEGAN WITH A POWERFUL AND IMPRESSIVE WINTER STORM THAT MOVED
THROUGH THE GREAT LAKES AND OHIO VALLEY AND DUMPED UP TO 2 FEET OF
SNOW ACROSS PARTS OF NORTHWEST INDIANA AND SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN
BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND OF THE MONTH. MANY OF THE HIGHER
SNOWFALL REPORTS WERE A COMBINATION OF SNOW FROM THE MAIN WEATHER
SYSTEM AND ADDITIONAL SNOW FROM ENHANCEMENT OFF OF LAKE MICHIGAN.
HUDSON LAKE INDIANA REPORTED THE GREATEST SNOWFALL TOTAL FOR THE
ENTIRE EVENT WITH AN IMPRESSIVE 26 INCHES.

THIS HEAVY SNOW WAS FOLLOWED BY A BRIEF PERIOD OF ARCTIC AIR AND
SUB ZERO LOW TEMPERATURES. HOWEVER...BY THE 6TH...7TH AND 8TH OF
JANUARY...RECORD WARM TEMPERATURES IN THE 60S WERE OCCURRING ACROSS
MOST OF THE REGION. THIS INCREDIBLE WARMUP WAS ALSO ACCOMPANIED BY
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND VERY HEAVY RAINFALL.
BETWEEN 2 AND 6 INCHES OF RAINFALL OCCURRED FROM THESE
THUNDERSTORMS...WITH THE HEAVIEST AMOUNTS FALLING IN THE
KANKAKEE...TIPPECANOE AND WABASH RIVER BASINS. THE HEAVY RAIN
COUPLED WITH THE RAPIDLY MELTING SNOWPACK LED TO RECORD
FLOODING ACROSS PARTS OF NORTHERN INDIANA. AS A MATTER OF
FACT...THE NWS NORTHERN INDIANA OFFICE HAD 31 RIVER GAUGE LOCATIONS
ABOVE FLOOD STAGE. RECORD FLOODING WAS REPORTED AT 3
LOCATIONS...TIPPECANOE RIVER AT ORA WHICH REACHED 15.63 FEET...BEAN
CREEK AT POWERS WHICH REACHED 18.87 FEET...AND PIGEON RIVER AT
SCOTT WHICH REACHED 7.32 FEET. FLOODING ALONG THE TIPPECANOE RIVER
WAS ESPECIALLY SIGNIFICANT NEAR MONTICELLO WHERE NUMEROUS HOMES WERE
EVACUATED DUE TO THE HIGH WATER.

THE COLDEST MORNING OF THE MONTH WAS ON JANUARY 25TH WHEN LOW
TEMPERATURES WERE BETWEEN ZERO AND MINUS 10 DEGREES AT LOCAL CLIMATE
DATA SITES. GOSHEN INDIANA RECORDED ONE OF THE LOWEST TEMPERATURES
WITH 9 DEGREES BELOW ZERO. HOWEVER...TEMPERATURES REBOUNDED QUICKLY
AND HIGH TEMPERATURES ON THE 29TH REACHED THE LOWER 50S. THIS
WARM SPELL WAS ALSO SHORT LIVED AS AN EXTREME ARCTIC COLD FRONT
BROUGHT A LINE OF INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS FOLLOWED BY ONE OF THE MOST
EXTREME TEMPERATURE DROPS THIS AREA HAS EVER SEEN. DURING THE
EVENING OF THE 29TH...THUNDERSTORMS WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND HEAVY
RAIN POUNDED NORTHERN INDIANA...NORTHWEST OHIO AND SOUTHERN LOWER
MICHIGAN. IMMEDIATELY BEHIND THESE STORMS...AN ARCTIC COLD FRONT
SWEPT THROUGH THE AREA WITH 50 TO 70 MPH WINDS. NUMEROUS TREES WERE
BLOWN DOWN AND SOME BUILDINGS SUSTAINED DAMAGE. AN INCREDIBLE 50
DEGREE TEMPERATURE DROP OCCURRED OVERNIGHT AS MORNING LOW
TEMPERATURES ON THE 30TH WERE NEAR ZERO FOLLOWING TEMPERATURES
AROUND 50 THE PREVIOUS EVENING.


...FEBRUARY...

FEBRUARY CONTINUED A TREND OF ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION AND A
ROLLER COASTER RIDE WITH TEMPERATURES AND PRECIPITATION TYPE.
SIGNIFICANT AND IN SOME CASES RECORD FLOODING OCCURRED FOR THE
SECOND STRAIGHT MONTH. AREAS DEVASTATED BY FLOODING IN JANUARY WERE
HIT HARD AGAIN BY RISING WATERS AND NEAR RECORD FLOODS. THIS PATTERN
OF RAIN...SNOW...WARM AND COLD THAT BEGAN IN DECEMBER 2007 CONTINUED
THROUGH FEBRUARY AND WAS FUELED BY A STRONG LA NINA IN THE
EQUATORIAL PACIFIC OCEAN.

FEBRUARY WAS A VERY WET MONTH WITH LITTLE SUNSHINE. AS A MATTER OF
FACT...THE FIRST 15 DAYS OF THE MONTH AT SOUTH BEND HAD AT LEAST A
TRACE OF PRECIPITATION AND 13 OF THESE 15 HAD MEASURABLE
PRECIPITATION. FOR THE ENTIRE MONTH...27 OF 29 DAYS HAD AT LEAST A
TRACE OF PRECIPITATION. THIS RANKED AS THE 12TH WETTEST FEBRUARY ON
RECORD AT SOUTH BEND WITH 3.39 INCHES.

SNOWFALL WAS ABOVE NORMAL FOR FEBRUARY. AT SOUTH BEND...26.7 INCHES
OF SNOW FELL...11.2 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS RANKED AS THE 7TH
SNOWIEST FEBRUARY ON RECORD. MEASURABLE SNOW FELL ON 19 DAYS.

THE ALTERNATING PATTERN BETWEEN COLD AND SNOWY WEATHER TO MILD AND
RAINY WEATHER CONTINUED THROUGH FEBRUARY. THIS PATTERN COMBINED
MELTING SNOW AND HEAVY RAINFALL TO PRODUCE SEVERAL BOUTS OF
WIDESPREAD FLOODING. MANY HOMES AND BUSINESSES REPORTED FLOODING
PROBLEMS WHERE THEY HAVE NEVER HAD IT BEFORE. STREAMS...CREEKS AND
RIVERS CREATED FLOODING NIGHTMARES AND CAUSED EVACUATIONS FOR THE
SECOND STRAIGHT MONTH IN MANY LOCATIONS ESPECIALLY ALONG THE
TIPPECANOE...KANKAKEE...ELKHART AND ST. JOSEPH RIVERS IN NORTHERN
INDIANA.

FEBRUARY ENDED UP BEING COLDER THAN NORMAL. AT SOUTH
BEND...THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE WAS 23.9...WHICH IS 3.4
DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.


...MARCH...

WINTER REFUSED TO GIVE UP ITS GRIP ACROSS NORTHWEST
INDIANA...DESPITE MARCH REPRESENTING BOTH THE METEOROLOGICAL AND
ASTRONOMICAL BEGINNING OF SPRING. THE AVERAGE MONTHLY
TEMPERATURE WAS OVER 3 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. HOWEVER...
PRECIPITATION AND SNOWFALL ENDED UP BEING BELOW NORMAL.

THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR MARCH AT SOUTH BEND WAS 3.3 DEGREES
BELOW NORMAL AT 34.2 DEGREES. THERE WERE 5 DAYS WHERE THE MAX
TEMPERATURE WAS 32 DEGREES OR COLDER AND 27 DAYS WHERE THE LOW
TEMPERATURE WAS AT OR BELOW FREEZING. 22 DAYS HAD AN AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE BELOW NORMAL...BUT ONLY 6 DAYS HAD AN AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE OF 10 DEGREES OR MORE BELOW NORMAL. THE WARMEST DAY OF
THE MONTH WAS THE LAST DAY WHEN THE HIGH TEMPERATURE REACHED 59
DEGREES.

PRECIPITATION AND SNOWFALL WERE ACTUALLY BELOW NORMAL FOR THE
MONTH. TOTAL PRECIPITATION WAS 2.50 INCHES...0.39 INCHES BELOW
NORMAL. THERE WAS 2.9 INCHES OF SNOWFALL RECORDED...5.8 INCHES BELOW
NORMAL.

THE STRONG LA NINA IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN CONTINUED TO HELP DEVELOP
STRONG STORMS SYSTEMS WITH ABUNDANT MOISTURE. THE STORM TRACKS FOR
THESE SYSTEMS WERE GENERALLY THROUGH THE OHIO VALLEY WHICH KEPT
NORTHWEST INDIANA ON THE COLDER SIDE OF THE SYSTEMS. THE TRACKS OF
THESE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEMS WERE ALSO JUST FAR ENOUGH SOUTH THAT THE
HEAVIER PRECIPITATION REMAINED SOUTH AND EAST OF SOUTH BEND. THIS
CONTRIBUTED TO KEEPING THE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE BELOW NORMAL AND
PRECIPITATION AND SNOWFALL BELOW NORMAL AS WELL. WITH THE COLDER
TEMPERATURES AND STORM TRACKS TO OUR SOUTH...SEVERE WEATHER WAS NOT
ABLE TO DEVELOP DUE TO THE LACK OF WARMTH AND INSTABILITY. NO SEVERE
WARNINGS WERE ISSUED FOR MARCH.


...APRIL...

AFTER WHAT HAD BEEN A RELATIVELY COOL AND DAMP SPRING...APRIL TURNED
OUT TO BE A RELATIVELY WARM AND DRY MONTH ACROSS NORTHERN INDIANA.

THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE AT SOUTH BEND WAS 50.6 DEGREES...2.8
DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THE MERCURY FINALLY HIT THE 70 DEGREE MARK FOR
THE FIRST TIME IN 2008 ON APRIL 11TH WHEN THE HIGH WAS 73. THIS MARK
WAS REACHED OR EXCEEDED ON 9 DAYS. APRIL 25TH ALSO MARKED THE FIRST
DAY OF THE YEAR THE TEMPERATURE REACHED 80 DEGREES...WITH A HIGH OF
83. THIS WAS THE ONLY 80 DEGREE DAY IN APRIL. APRIL ALSO HAD A FEW
COLD NIGHTS. THE LOWEST MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OCCURRED ON APRIL 2ND WHEN
THE LOW REACHED 22. A NEAR RECORD LOW TEMPERATURE OCCURRED ON APRIL
30TH WHEN SOUTH BEND REACHED A LOW OF 27...1 DEGREE WARMER THAN THE
RECORD OF 26 SET IN 1931. FROST ADVISORIES AND FREEZE WARNINGS WERE
IN EFFECT FOR THIS NIGHT AS THE WARM MONTH HAD ALLOWED MANY PLANTS
AND TREES TO BLOOM.

MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION FELL ON 12 OUT OF 30 DAYS. A TOTAL OF 2.51
INCHES OF PRECIPITATION OCCURRED...1.11 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THE
GREATEST CALENDAR DAY PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED ON APRIL 10TH WITH
1.04 INCHES OF RAINFALL. THIS WAS A RECORD FOR THE DATE...EXCEEDING
THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 0.91 INCHES SET IN 1954. THIS WAS ALSO THE
GREATEST 24 HOUR PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH. SNOWFALL WAS ONLY A
TRACE FOR APRIL...WHICH OCCURRED ON APRIL 12TH AND 13TH. NORMAL
SNOWFALL FOR APRIL IS 1.7 INCHES. THE SEASONAL TOTAL TO DATE WAS
75.9 INCHES...12 INCHES HIGHER THAN 2007...BUT STILL 6 TENTHS OF AN
INCH BELOW NORMAL.


...MAY...

MAY WAS A RATHER TRANQUIL...COOL AND DRY MONTH AT SOUTH BEND. THE
AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE WAS 56.0 DEGREES...3.6 DEGREES BELOW
NORMAL. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE WAS 82 DEGREES ON THE 26TH AND THE
LOWEST TEMPERATURE WAS 33 ON THE 4TH. 22 DAYS HAD AN AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE BELOW NORMAL WHILE ONLY ONE DAY DURING THE MONTH WAS
MORE THAN 10 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL...AND THAT WAS ON MAY 2ND. IN
CONTRAST...THERE WERE 5 DAYS WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 10 OR
MORE DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.

PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS 2.64 INCHES...0.86 INCHES BELOW
NORMAL. MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON 10 DAYS...WITH THE MOST
PRECIPITATION OCCURRING ON MAY 11TH WHEN 0.83 INCHES OF RAIN FELL.
THERE WAS NO SNOWFALL RECORDED DURING THE MONTH.

THE FIRST TORNADOES OF THE SEASON OCCURRED ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL
INDIANA AND NORTHWEST OHIO IN MAY. TORNADOES OF EF0 AND EF1
INTENSITY OCCURRED ON MAY 30TH ACROSS WABASH COUNTY. ON MAY
31ST...AN EF0 TORNADO MOVED FROM ADAMS COUNTY INDIANA INTO VAN WERT
COUNTY OHIO. AN EF1 TORNADO ALSO OCCURRED IN PUTNAM COUNTY OHIO ON
THE 31ST.


...JUNE...

JUNE WAS ANOTHER RELATIVELY TRANQUIL MONTH WITH TEMPERATURES JUST
ABOVE NORMAL AND BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION.  THE AVERAGE MONTHLY
TEMPERATURE WAS 70.2 DEGREES...1.2 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THE HIGHEST
TEMPERATURE WAS 90 DEGREES ON THE 8TH...AND THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE
WAS 48 ON THE 24TH. FOURTEEN OF THE THE FIRST FIFTEEN DAYS OF JUNE
HAD AVERAGE TEMPERATURES ABOVE NORMAL. 11 OF THE LAST 15 DAYS OF
JUNE WERE AT OR BELOW NORMAL. THERE WAS 1 DAY IN JUNE WITH A HIGH
TEMPERATURE OF 90 DEGREES OR HIGHER.

PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS 2.84 INCHES...1.35 INCHES BELOW
NORMAL. MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON 12 DAYS...WITH THE MOST
PRECIPITATION OCCURRING ON THE 8TH WHEN 1.22 INCHES OF RAIN FELL.
A HALF INCH OR MORE OF PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED ON ONLY 1 DAY.

TWO MORE TORNADOES OCCURRED IN JUNE ACROSS EAST CENTRAL INDIANA AND
NORTHWEST OHIO...BOTH OCCURRING ON JUNE 6TH. AN EF1 TORNADO OCCURRED
IN GRANT COUNTY INDIANA WHILE A SECOND EF1 TORNADO OCCURRED IN VAN
WERT COUNTY OHIO.


...JULY...

JULY WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR LITTLE...EXCEPT FOR A DRY SPELL IN THE
SECOND HALF OF THE MONTH. TEMPERATURES ENDED THE MONTH EXACTLY AT
AVERAGE...WITH BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION. THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE
FOR THE MONTH WAS 73.0 DEGREES. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE WAS 91
DEGREES RECORDED ON BOTH THE 15TH AND THE 17TH...WITH THE
LOWEST TEMPERATURE OF 48 DEGREES RECORDED ON THE 1ST. 5 DAYS
RECORDED HIGHS AT OR ABOVE 90...WITH 4 OF THE 5 CONSECUTIVELY FROM
THE 15TH TO THE 18TH.

PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS 2.38 INCHES...1.35 INCHES BELOW
NORMAL. MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON 9 DAYS WITH 6 OF THOSE
DAYS FALLING BEFORE THE 12TH OF THE MONTH. THE MOST PRECIPITATION
OCCURRED ON THE 2ND WHEN 0.66 INCHES OF RAIN FELL. A HALF INCH OR
MORE OF PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED ON ONLY 2 DAYS...THE 2ND AND THE
19TH. NO MEASURABLE RAINFALL WAS RECORDED FROM THE 22ND THROUGH THE
31ST.

THE FINAL TORNADO OF THE YEAR FOR THE COUNTY WARNING AREA OF THE
NORTHERN INDIANA OFFICE OCCURRED ON JULY 8TH. AN EF0 TORNADO
OCCURRED IN WHITLEY COUNTY INDIANA NEAR THE ALLEN COUNTY LINE. THERE
WERE NO TORNADOES RECORDED FOR 2008 IN THE MICHIGAN COUNTIES COVERED
BY THE NWS NORTHERN INDIANA OFFICE.


...AUGUST...

THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR AUGUST WAS SLIGHTLY BELOW NORMAL AND THE
TOTAL PRECIPITATION WAS ALSO BELOW NORMAL. THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE
FOR AUGUST WAS 70.4 DEGREES WHICH IS 0.6 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. THE
HIGHEST TEMPERATURE WAS 89 DEGREES WHICH WAS RECORDED ON THE 23RD
AND THE 31ST...WITH THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE OF 50 DEGREES RECORDED ON
THE 10TH. AVERAGE TEMPERATURES WERE BELOW NORMAL FROM THE 7TH
THROUGH THE 16TH.

TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS 1.90 INCHES...WHICH IS 2.08
INCHES BELOW NORMAL. MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON 6 DAYS.
THE MOST PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON THE 29TH WHEN 0.67 INCHES OF RAIN
FELL. THE 29TH IS ALSO THE ONLY DAY WHEN A HALF INCH OR MORE OF
PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED.

EACH MONTH OF THE SUMMER SEASON HAD PRECIPITATION DEFICITS OF MORE
THAN AN INCH WITH AUGUST BEING MORE THAN 2 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THE
SUMMER SEASON WAS 4.78 INCHES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 11.90 INCHES OF
PRECIPITATION. THIS EXTENDED DRY PERIOD HAD AN IMPACT ON LOCAL
AGRICULTURE AND HOMEOWNERS WITH MANY CROPS AND LAWNS SHOWING STRESS
FROM THE DRY WEATHER . AS A RESULT...NORTHERN INDIANA AND
PARTS OF SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN AND NORTHWEST OHIO WERE PLACED IN
A D0 DROUGHT CATEGORY WHICH SIGNIFIES ABNORMALLY DRY CONDITIONS.


...SEPTEMBER...

...RECORD SETTING MONTH FOR PRECIPITATION AT SOUTH BEND...

THE DRY WEATHER AND DO DROUGHT CONDITIONS CAME TO AN INCREDIBLY FAST
END IN SEPTEMBER. THE MONTHLY RAINFALL TOTAL AT SOUTH BEND REGIONAL
AIRPORT WAS AN AMAZING 13.92 INCHES IN SEPTEMBER...10.13 INCHES
ABOVE NORMAL. THIS SHATTERED THE RECORD FOR THE WETTEST SEPTEMBER ON
RECORD AS WELL AS THE ALL-TIME WETTEST MONTH ON RECORD.

THE PREVIOUS WETTEST SEPTEMBER ON RECORD WAS 1977 WITH 9.01 INCHES
OF PRECIPITATION. THE PREVIOUS ALL-TIME WETTEST MONTH ON RECORD WAS
JUNE 1993 WITH 10.86 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION.

NEARLY 80 PERCENT OF THE SEPTEMBER RAINFALL OCCURRED FROM SEPTEMBER
12TH THROUGH SEPTEMBER 14TH. DURING THIS 3 DAY PERIOD...10.88 INCHES
OF RAIN FELL AT SOUTH BEND...WITH 10.65 INCHES OCCURRING ON
SEPTEMBER 13TH AND 14TH. THIS MEANS THAT MORE RAIN FELL IN JUST TWO
SEPTEMBER DAYS THAN IN ANY OTHER ENTIRE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER. IT ALSO
MEANS THAT MORE RAIN FELL IN JUST 3 DAYS THAN IN ANY OTHER ENTIRE
MONTH ON RECORD. THE GREATEST 24 HOUR RAINFALL TOTAL WAS 6.88 INCHES
ON THE 13TH AND 14TH. OFFICIAL PRECIPITATION RECORDS AT SOUTH BEND
BEGAN IN 1894.

THE HEAVY PRECIPITATION IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MONTH WAS DUE LARGELY
TO THE REMNANTS OF TWO TROPICAL STORM SYSTEMS WHICH ALSO INTERACTED
WITH A STALLED FRONT ACROSS THE WESTERN GREAT LAKES. TROPICAL STORM
LOWELL MOVED INTO THE AREA FROM THE PACIFIC OCEAN AND INTERACTED
WITH THE STALLED FRONTAL BOUNDARY TO CREATE THE FIRST HEAVY RAINFALL
EVENT ON THE 12TH AND 13TH OF THE MONTH. A BRIEF BREAK IN THE
RAINFALL OCCURRED BEFORE THE REMNANTS OF HURRICANE IKE CAME NORTH
AND MOVED ACROSS THE REGION ON THE 14TH. ALL OF THIS RAIN IN A SHORT
PERIOD OF TIME LED TO SIGNIFICANT FLOODING ACROSS NORTHWEST INDIANA
AND PARTS OF SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN. SOME AREAS THAT HAD ALREADY
EXPERIENCED DEVASTATING FLOODING IN JANUARY AND FEBRUARY ONCE AGAIN
FACED HIGH WATER AND FLOODING.

THIS HEAVY RAINFALL QUICKLY WIPED OUT WHAT HAD BEEN AN EXTENDED DRY
PERIOD ACROSS PARTS OF NORTHERN INDIANA AND SOUTHWEST LOWER
MICHIGAN. THERE HAD BEEN 6 CONSECUTIVE MONTHS WITH BELOW NORMAL
PRECIPITATION AND THE SUMMER SEASON WAS 4.78 INCHES BELOW NORMAL.
WITHOUT THESE TROPICAL STORM SYSTEMS...SEPTEMBER 2008 COULD HAVE
BEEN BELOW NORMAL AS WELL SINCE THE REST OF THE MONTH HAD ONLY ABOUT
THREE INCHES OF RAINFALL AND THERE WAS NO RAINFALL RECORDED FROM
SEPTEMBER 16TH TO SEPTEMBER 28TH. NORMAL RAINFALL FOR SEPTEMBER IS
3.79 INCHES.

THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE FOR SEPTEMBER WAS 65.9 DEGREES...
WHICH WAS 2.5 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE OF THE
YEAR...92 DEGREES...OCCURRED ON SEPTEMBER 2ND. THE LOW TEMPERATURE
FOR THE MONTH WAS 44 WHICH OCCURRED ON SEPTEMBER 10TH.


...OCTOBER...

TEMPERATURES AND PRECIPITATION WERE ABOUT NORMAL FOR THE MONTH OF
OCTOBER AT SOUTH BEND. THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS 51.6 DEGREES
WHICH IS 0.5 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS
3.13 INCHES...0.14 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THERE WAS ALSO 0.7 INCHES OF
SNOWFALL...0.2 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL.

OCTOBER HAD 16 DAYS WITH THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE BELOW NORMAL AND 12
DAYS WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE ABOVE NORMAL. THERE WERE 3 DAYS OF
NORMAL TEMPERATURES. IT WAS ESPECIALLY WARM FROM THE 6TH THROUGH THE
15TH...WITH HIGHS RANGING FROM THE UPPER 60S TO MIDDLE 80S DURING
THIS PERIOD. THE 11TH...12TH AND 13TH HAD HIGH TEMPERATURES OF
80...84 AND 83. THE 84 DEGREES ON OCTOBER 12TH WAS THE WARMEST
TEMPERATURE OF THE MONTH AND ALSO SET A NEW RECORD FOR THAT
DATE...BREAKING THE OLD RECORD OF 83 SET IN 1995. THE COLDEST PART
OF OCTOBER 2008 OCCURRED FROM THE 27TH TO THE 30TH...WHEN HIGHS WERE
ONLY IN THE 30S AND 40S. LOWS RANGED FROM THE MIDDLE 20S TO LOWER
30S. THE COLDEST TEMPERATURE OF THE MONTH WAS 27 WHICH OCCURRED ON
THE MORNING OF THE 30TH.

THERE WAS ALSO A NEW RECORD FOR DAILY RAINFALL SET AT SOUTH BEND ON
OCTOBER 24TH. 1.04 INCHES OF RAINFALL WAS RECORDED...BREAKING THE
OLD RECORD OF 1 INCH SET IN 1918.


...NOVEMBER...

...SNOWY BUT DRIER THAN NORMAL...

THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER WAS SNOWIER THAN NORMAL AT SOUTH BEND BUT
PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS ACTUALLY BELOW NORMAL. THIS WAS IN
LARGE PART DUE TO THE FACT THAT MUCH OF THE SNOW THAT FELL WAS A
RESULT OF LAKE EFFECT SNOWFALL. THIS TYPE OF SNOW USUALLY DOES NOT
CONTAIN AS MUCH MOISTURE AS OTHER WEATHER SYSTEMS. LAKE EFFECT
SNOWFALL HAS A HIGHER LIQUID TO SNOW RATIO...WHICH IS A REASON WHY
IT CAN BE VERY FLUFFY AND LOOK LIKE A POWDER.

PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER WAS 2.02 INCHES...WHICH IS
1.37 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON 16
DAYS. SNOWFALL FOR THE MONTH WAS 16.2 INCHES...WHICH IS 8.5 INCHES
ABOVE NORMAL. MEASURABLE SNOWFALL OCCURRED ON 8 DAYS. ON NOVEMBER
21ST...9.4 INCHES OF SNOW FELL WHICH ALSO SET A NEW RECORD FOR DAILY
SNOWFALL ON THIS DATE. THE PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 3 INCHES AND OCCURRED
IN 1971. THE HIGHEST SINGLE DAY SNOWFALL ON RECORD FOR NOVEMBER IS
18.0 INCHES WHICH OCCURRED ON NOVEMBER 2ND 1911.

WHILE THIS MONTH WILL BE REMEMBERED AS GENERALLY COLD AND SNOWY...IT
BEGAN ON A VERY WARM NOTE. SOUTH BEND RECORDED 4 STRAIGHT DAYS OF
HIGH TEMPERATURES ABOVE 70 FROM THE 3RD THROUGH THE 6TH. THE FIRST 7
DAYS OF THE MONTH ALL HAD AVERAGE TEMPERATURES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS
WARM WEATHER QUICKLY ENDED THOUGH AS HIGH TEMPERATURES WERE ONLY IN
THE 30S BY THE 9TH AND A TRACE OF SNOWFALL WAS RECORDED ON THE 8TH.
THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE WAS 38.2 DEGREES...1.9 DEGREES BELOW
NORMAL. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 72 ON THE 4TH
WHILE THE COLDEST TEMPERATURE WAS 7 ON THE 23RD. A RECORD LOW
TEMPERATURE WAS TIED ON NOVEMBER 18TH WHEN THE LOW WAS 8 DEGREES
ABOVE ZERO.


...DECEMBER...

...A COLD AND WET MONTH WITH NEAR NORMAL SNOWFALL...

DECEMBER ENDED THE YEAR OF 2008 IN A SIMILAR WAY THAT IT BEGAN...IN
A VERY ACTIVE AND COLD PATTERN. DECEMBER WAS RATHER COLD WITH AN
ACTIVE STORM PATTERN THAT BROUGHT NUMEROUS WEATHER SYSTEMS AND A
VARIETY OF WEATHER TO THE REGION. THE AREA EXPERIENCED HEAVY
SNOW...HEAVY RAIN...SLEET...FREEZING RAIN...ICE
ACCUMULATIONS...FLOODING...LOW TEMPERATURES BELOW ZERO...AND EVEN
RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURES IN THE LOWER 60S.

THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE AT SOUTH BEND FOR DECEMBER WILL END UP BEING
AROUND 3 TO 4 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. THE RANGE OF TEMPERATURES DURING
THE MONTH WAS RATHER SPECTACULAR WITH A RECORD HIGH OF 62 ON THE
27TH AND A LOW TEMPERATURE OF NEGATIVE 3 ONLY 6 DAYS EARLIER ON THE
21ST.

PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS ABOVE NORMAL AND WILL END UP AROUND
1 INCH ABOVE NORMAL. DESPITE THE BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND ABOVE
NORMAL PRECIPITATION...THE MONTHLY SNOWFALL WILL BE BELOW THE NORMAL
OF 19.2 INCHES. THIS IS BECAUSE A LARGE AMOUNT OF THE PRECIPITATION
FELL IN THE FORM OF RAIN OR FREEZING RAIN. A HEAVY RAIN EVENT
OCCURRED IN EARLY DECEMBER WHEN 0.92 INCHES OF RAIN WAS RECORDED ON
THE 9TH AND 0.81 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED ON THE
19TH...WHICH FELL AS A COMBINATION OF SNOW...SLEET AND FREEZING RAIN
DURING A WINTER STORM.

THIS WINTER STORM ON THE 19TH WAS ONE OF THE MANY WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS
OF THE MONTH. A MIX OF SNOW AND SLEET CHANGED TO FREEZING RAIN AND
SLEET DURING THE NIGHT. WHILE ONLY A FEW INCHES OF SNOW FELL...IT
WAS ACCOMPANIED BY A FEW INCHES OF SLEET AND BETWEEN ONE QUARTER AND
ONE HALF INCH OF ICE ACCUMULATION ON MOST EXPOSED SURFACES. NUMEROUS
POWER OUTAGES AND ACCIDENTS WERE REPORTED FROM THIS WINTER STORM.
THESE HARSH CONDITIONS WERE THEN FOLLOWED BY BLIZZARD CONDITIONS ON
THE 21ST ACROSS SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN AND NEAR BLIZZARD
CONDITIONS IN NORTHERN INDIANA. BITTERLY COLD ARCTIC AIR ALSO
ACCOMPANIED THE HIGH WINDS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE WHITEOUT CONDITIONS.
AS A RESULT OF THE ARCTIC AIR AND HIGH WINDS...WIND CHILL VALUES DIPPED
TO BETWEEN 20 DEGREES BELOW ZERO AND 30 DEGREES BELOW ZERO ON THE
21ST...WITH ACTUAL AIR TEMPERATURES FALLING BELOW ZERO DURING THE
DAY. THIS PROMPTED WIND CHILL WARNINGS FOR THE AREA INTO THE 22ND.

THE COLD ARTIC AIR WAS SHORT LIVED AND TEMPERATURES IN THE 60S
FOLLOWED BY SATURDAY THE 27TH. A COLD FRONT MOVED THROUGH THE REGION
ON SUNDAY THE 28TH AND WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR GENERATING SEVERAL LINES
OF INTENSE RAIN SHOWERS AND ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. SEVERAL
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNINGS WERE ISSUED ACROSS NORTHERN INDIANA AND
A FEW DAMAGE REPORTS WERE RECEIVED.

CLIMATE RECORDS AND INFORMATION AS WELL AS INTERESTING STORIES ON
PAST WEATHER EVENTS CAN BE FOUND ON THE NWS NORTHERN INDIANA WEBSITE
AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/IWX. JUST CLICK ON THE CLIMATE LINK AT THE TOP OF
THE PAGE.

$$

LASHLEY