NATIONAL WEATHER SUMMARY
OCTOBER 2018
1-6: Mostly dry weather accompanied summer-like warmth from the Ohio River southward to the Gulf Coast, promoting crop maturation and harvesting. Weekly temperatures ranged from 10 to 15°F above normal in parts of the Ohio Valley and environs.
Temperatures averaged at least 10°F below normal across portions of Montana, Minnesota, and the Dakotas. On October 4-5, freezes were noted as far south as western Nebraska, while a few readings below 20°F occurred in North Dakota and northern Montana.
The last day of September featured high temperatures at or below the freezing mark in a few Montana locations, including Cut Bank (32°F). A few days later, record setting lows for October 4 dipped to 18°F in Dickinson, ND, and 25°F in Pierre, SD.
In Nebraska, Grand Island notched a daily-record high of 94°F on October 3, followed the next day by a high of 45°F. Highs in South Dakota on October 4 peaked at just 44°F in Huron and Sioux Falls, while daily-record highs topped the 90-degree mark
in locations such as Tampa, FL (92°F), and Memphis, TN (92°F). On October 5, highs also reached 92°F (and set daily-record highs) in Amarillo, TX, and Nashville, TN. From October 5-7, Cape Girardeau, MO, tallied a trio of daily-record highs of 90°F.
Other record-setting highs for October 6 included 94°F in New Iberia, LA, and 90°F in St. Louis, MO.

7-13: The season’s first significant snowfall blanketed parts of the Rockies, northern Plains, and far upper Midwest. Weekly temperatures averaged at least 5 to 15°F below normal across much of the Plains and upper Midwest, with freezes occurring
throughout the northern half of the Plains and the upper Great Lakes region. Cool weather also covered much of the West, except along the immediate Pacific Coast. Varying amounts of precipitation fell in the West, excluding northern and central
California and the western Great Basin. Elsewhere, lingering warmth in advance of Michael boosted temperatures more than 10°F above normal in several Eastern locations. Early-week warmth catapulted temperatures to the 90-degree mark or higher—and to
daily-record levels—in locations such as Tuscaloosa, AL (92°F on October 7), and New Iberia, LA (93°F on October 8). On October 8-9, consecutive daily-record highs were set in Erie, PA (89 and 87°F), and Cleveland, OH (89 and 86°F). Similarly, a
pair of daily-record highs (80 and 82°F, respectively) occurred on October 9-10 in Burlington, VT. Subsequently, sharply colder air arrived in the wake of a cold front’s passage. By October 10, Miles City, MT, tied a daily record with a low of 19°F.
Two days later, Grand Forks, ND, logged a daily-record low of 9°F. In contrast, late-season warmth lingered along the southern Atlantic Coast. In Georgia, Savannah posted a daily-record high of 90°F on October 11. Melbourne, FL, notched a pair of
daily-record highs (93 and 91°F, respectively) on October 11-12.

14-20: Many other areas of the country experienced a mid-month stretch of dry weather, although some snow fell early in the week from the central Plains into the upper Midwest. In the Southwest, however, lingering rain and snow showers provided some
additional drought relief. Across the lower Southeast, warm, mostly dry weather favored hurricane recovery efforts. In fact, substantially warmer-than-normal weather was limited to the lower Southeast, where temperatures generally ranged from 5 to 10°
F above normal. Cool weather covered most of the remainder of the country. Weekly temperatures averaged 10 to 15°F below normal in the south-central U.S. and broadly ranged from 5 to 10°F below normal from the Southwest into the Midwest. By the
middle of October, freezes had ended the growing season across large sections of the Plains, Midwest, and Northeast. On October 15, a widespread freeze occurred as far south as northern Texas. Subsequent freezes, from October 16-19, reached into the
Ohio Valley and the northern Mid-Atlantic States.
On October 14-15, consecutive daily-record lows were established in locations such as Laramie, WY (2 and 0°); Alliance, NE (6 and 5°F); Burlington, CO (18 and 14°F); and Goodland, KS (20 and 16°F). On the latter date, freezes (and daily-record lows)
occurred in Texas locations such as Amarillo (28°F) and Borger (30°F). Elsewhere in Texas, Dallas-Ft. Worth (41°F on October 15) noted its first daily-record low since July 20, 2014. Farther north, Kansas City, MO, notched a pair of daily-record
lows (30 and 26°F, respectively) on October 15-16. Other Midwestern daily-record lows on the 16th included 28°F in Columbia, MO, and Springfield, IL. At the height of the cold snap, temperatures failed to reach the freezing mark as far south as the
central High Plains. On October 14, high temperatures peaked at 30°F in Sheridan, WY, and 27°F—accompanied by a 2.7inch snowfall—in Denver, CO. In contrast, summer-like heat lingered across the lower Southeast. Fort Myers, FL, opened the week on
October 14-15 with a pair of daily-record highs of 92°F. Similarly, Tampa, FL, registered consecutive daily-record highs (92 and 93°F, respectively) on October 15-16, followed by another record-setting high of 93°F on October 18. Elsewhere in
Florida, Jacksonville tallied a trio of daily-record highs (91, 93, and 94°F) from October 15-17. On October 16, daily-record highs reached 90°F as far north as Augusta, GA, and Charleston, SC. Warmth also appeared in the Northwest, later spreading
across the northern Plains. Daily-record highs reached 80°F (on October 16) in Quillayute, WA, and 76°F (on October 18) in Grand Forks, ND.

21-27: An extended period of mostly dry weather across the northern and central Plains and the Midwest. The southern Rockies also received significant, drought-easing precipitation, but mostly dry weather persisted in California and the Great Basin. In
addition, near- or above-normal temperatures dominated the West and the northern Plains. , weekly temperatures averaged at least 5°F below normal across much of the South, East, and lower Midwest. Lingering Southern warmth was limited to Florida’s
peninsula. Summer-like warmth lingered across southern Florida, where daily-record highs rose to 91°F in Miami (on October 21) and West Palm Beach (on October 26). In contrast, October 21 featured daily-record lows in Illinois locations such as
Springfield (21°F) and Rockford (22°F). Meanwhile, Eastern high temperatures failed to reach the 50-degree mark in many places on several days; examples included 42°F (on October 25) in Albany, NY; 43°F (on October 21) in Bluefield, WV; and 47°F (
on October 26) in Greensboro, NC. In Maine, Houlton closed the week with consecutive daily-record lows (14 and 10°F, respectively) on October 26-27. Farther west, late-week warmth arrived in southern California, where Palmdale posted a daily record
high of 90°F on October 27.

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