NATIONAL WEATHER SUMMARY
DECEMBER 2019

1-7: Mostly dry weather prevailed in the Midwest, but a persistent snow cover across the northern Corn Belt. Meanwhile, mild, dry weather covered the nation’s mid-section. In fact, near- or above-normal temperatures prevailed from the Mississippi
Valley westward, except in some Western mountain valleys. Weekly temperatures averaged more than 10°F above normal in scattered locations on the northern High Plains—but were at least 5°F below normal across the Northeast and much of Florida’s
peninsula.
As the month began, cold weather lingered across the Intermountain West. Record-setting lows for December 1 dipped to -18°F in Big Piney, WY, and -12°F at Utah’s Bryce
Canyon Airport. Before warmer weather arrived, La Grande, OR, posted a daily-record low of 8°F on December 3. Meanwhile, chilly air also settled across Florida, where temperatures on December 3 remained below the 60-degree mark as far south as Daytona
Beach (high of 58°F). Later, warmth developed across the Plains and South. In Texas, record-setting highs for December 5 rose to 84°F in San Angelo and 83°F in Abilene. On December 6 in Louisiana, daily-record highs climbed to 84°F in New Orleans
and 81°F in Lake Charles. Warmth also developed in California’s Central Valley, where Sacramento closed the week with consecutive daily-record highs (68 and 67°F, respectively) on December 6-7. Stockton, CA, with a high of 70°F, also notched a
daily-record high for December 7. Elsewhere on the 7th, mild weather on the High Plains resulted in a daily-record high of 57°F in Miles City, MT.

8-14: Weekly temperatures averaged as much as 10°F above normal in several Western areas, including much of the northern Great Basin. Near- or above-normal temperatures covered the remainder of the country, except the northern Plains and upper Midwest.
Readings averaged 10 to 15°F below normal across much of North Dakota and northern Minnesota. Temperatures briefly plunged below 20°F in scattered locations from eastern Montana to northern Wisconsin.
For much of the week, warmth prevailed across the South. On December 8 in Texas, daily-record highs climbed to 81°F in Abilene and 76°F in Childress. The following day, Houston, TX, registered a high of 84°F, just one degree shy of the monthly
record originally set on December 3, 1995. Elsewhere in Texas, record-setting highs for December 9 soared to 88°F in Del Rio and 82°F in Waco. By December 10, warmth briefly shifted into the Southeast, where daily-record highs included 88°F in Fort
Myers, FL, and 80°F in Florence, SC. December records were tied on the 10th in Jacksonville, FL (85°F), and Savannah, GA (83°F). Late in the week, unusual warmth returned across Texas. From December 1315, Del Rio, TX, tallied a trio of daily-record
highs (86, 91, and 89°F). Del Rio had never previously topped the 90-degree mark in December; the monthly record had been 90°F on December 4, 1977. Other daily-record highs in Texas on the 14th included 93°F in McAllen; 91°F in Laredo; and 90°F in
Brownsville and Harlingen. In contrast, frigid conditions intensified across the northern Plains and upper Midwest. By the morning of December 15, Hibbing, MN, logged a daily-record low of -26°F.

Dec. 15-21: Cold conditions dominated the much of the country, with weekly temperatures averaging at least 5 to 10°F below normal in the central Rockies and environs, as well as the upper Great Lakes region and an area stretching from the Ohio Valley
into the Northeast. However, mild weather prevailed in much of the Southeast and stretched from the Pacific Northwest to the northern High Plains. Temperatures averaged more than 10°F above normal in parts of Montana.
Early-week warmth dominated the South. December 14-16 featured a trio of daily-record highs (93, 91, and 89°F) in McAllen, TX. On the 15th, record-setting highs in Texas soared to 90°F in Laredo and 89°F in San Angelo. Farther east, daily-record
high for December 16 included 87°F in Fort Myers, FL, and 81°F in Lake Charles, LA. Fort Myers posted another daily record on December 17, with a high of 86°F. By December 18, however, lows plunged to daily-record levels in Texas locations such as
Del Rio (24°F) and Corpus Christi (29°F). Del Rio had recorded a monthly record high of 91°F just 4 days earlier, on December 14. Corpus Christi had experienced consecutive daily-record highs (89 and 86°F, respectively) on December 14-15. Farther
north, frigid weather led to daily-record lows in Hibbing, MN (-26°F on December 15); Big Piney, WY (15°F on December 16); and Crested Butte, CO (-28°F on December 17). Late in the week, warm air returned across the northern High Plains and the
Northwest. On December 20-21, the week ended with consecutive daily-record highs in Montana locations such as Missoula (54 and 58°F) and Kalispell (51 and 54°F). In Oregon, record-setting highs for December 20 rose to 66°F in Hermiston and 63°F in
Medford. Elsewhere in the West, daily-record highs for December 21 included 63°F in Reno, NV, and Walla Walla, WA.

22-28: Marked warming occurred from the Plains eastward, with weekly temperatures averaging 10 to 20°F above normal in most areas between the Rockies and Appalachians. However, readings averaged up to 5°F below normal in southern California. Warmth
dominated the Plains and Midwest. December 22 featured daily-record highs in locations such as Goodland, KS (71°F), and Oshkosh, WI (50°F). From December 24-26, Rockford, IL, tallied a trio of daily-record highs (55, 59, and 56°F). It was the
warmest Christmas Day on record in several Midwestern communities, including Quincy, IL (66°F); St. Joseph, MO (65°F); and Burlington, IA (63°F). During a final day of record setting Midwestern warmth on December 26, highs rose to 65°F in Lincoln,
IL; 64°F in Youngstown, OH; and 63°F in South Bend, IN. At week’s end, warmth made another push across the South, where record-setting highs for December 28 included 79°F in Lake Charles, LA, and 70°F in Paducah, KY.

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