March was the 5th month in a row with below normal temperatures according to Clinton area weather observer Jim Blaess. He says the overall temperature was nearly 33 degrees and that’s almost 6 degrees below the normal for the month.
In March the lowest reading was 15 below zero on March 3rd. Blaess says that is in the record books in a couple of places.
The 15 below zero broke the record for March 3rd which had been zero set in 1943. It was also the coldest temperature recorded in March with the old record of 14 below zero on March 5th and 6th – 1960.
The highest reading was 68 on the 31st.
Precipitation for March was also less than normal. Blaess said there was about 6-tenths of an inch of precipitation which is below the average of about 2-and a quarter inches. Blaess says it was the driest March since 1981 and is the 5th driest March in records to 1878.
The precipitation for the first three months of year is about 3-and three*quarters of an inch which Blaess says is below the average of about five inches.
During the month there was also 5 and a half inches of snow which is over two inches above the normal.
March also ended the snow season that is considered October thru March. During that period, Blaess says the Clinton area received about 49 inches snow which is 20 inches above normal and will be the 12th snowiest period since the 1887-1888 period.
Blaess says in April you can expect about three inches of precipitation including one inch of snow. He says the temperatures average 57 for the high and 37 for low on the first and by the end of the month those rise to 69 and 46.
