A record high temperature, and still no rain in sight for Modesto
Some Modesto residents looked out their windows Saturday morning to an encouraging sight: raindrops darkening pavement or making ripples in their swimming pools. Unfortunately, any hopes for a rainy day (no precipitation was in the forecast, by the way) dried up within minutes.
No rain is expected this week in Modesto, according to the National Weather Service, and Wednesday will mark one month since any measurable amount fell here. Even then, a measly .03 inches fell Jan. 26, according to Modesto Irrigation District records. The last decent rain days were Jan. 16, which saw 0.31 inches of rain — and snow in Stanislaus County — and before that Jan. 9, which had 0.28 inches.
The current season rain total for Modesto is 3.69 inches, according to MID. The irrigation district’s weather records show the average season rainfall is 12.2 inches. The historical average this far into the season, which runs from July 1 to June 30, is more than 8.5 inches.
A graphic released by the National Weather Service’s Sacramento office last week says “February is shaping up to be the driest on record” for Modesto, matched only by zero inches recorded in 1912. Normal February rainfall for Modesto is 2.38 inches, it says. (MID says historic average rainfall in February is 2.05 inches.)
It’s not just dry in Modesto, it’s been warm, too. By both MID and National Weather Service records, Saturday’s high temperature of 74 degrees was a record for Feb. 22. The weather service says the temperature broke the old record for the date of 73 degrees in 1985, while MID shows a high of 73 not just that year but in 1981 and 1978.
The warm weather will continue through the end of the month, the weather service forecast shows. Highs will be near 71 degrees Monday, 72 Tuesday, 75 Wednesday, 78 Thursday, 80 Friday and 74 Saturday.
If the thermometer reaches 80 degrees Friday, it will tie the record temperature set for Feb. 28 in 1947, according to the MID.
This story was originally published February 23, 2020 at 12:33 PM.
