Virginia:

Arlington/Washington, D.C. - " TEMPERATURES IN WASHINGTON DC THIS APRIL 2014 AVERAGED NEAR NORMAL. PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH WAS WELL ABOVE NORMAL...MAKING IT THE WETTEST APRIL SINCE 1983 AND THE 5TH WETTEST APRIL ON RECORD. A RECORD DAILY HIGH MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF 65 DEGF WAS SET ON THE 14TH...BREAKING THE OLD RECORD OF 63 DEGF SET IN 1896. REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT MEASURED 3.91 INCHES OF RAINFALL DURING THE 29TH-30TH WHEN A SLOW-MOVING STORM SYSTEM IMPACTED THE REGION... WHICH WAS THE SECOND HIGHEST TWO-DAY RAINFALL IN APRIL ON RECORD FOR WASHINGTON DC. THE ONLY TWO-DAY PERIOD IN APRIL THAT WAS WETTER WAS 25-26 APRIL 1889 (4.71 INCHES). A RECORD DAILY MAXIMUM RAINFALL OF 2.70 INCHES WAS SET ON THE 30TH...BREAKING THE OLD RECORD OF 1.16 SET IN 2005. THIS AMOUNT ALSO RANKS AS THE 4TH WETTEST DAY IN APRIL ON RECORD AND THE WETTEST APRIL DAY IN 44 YEARS (WHEN 3.04 INCHES OF RAINFALL WAS RECORDED ON 14 APRIL 1970). THE WETTEST APRIL DAY ON RECORD IS 26 APRIL 1889 (3.21 INCHES). A TRACE OF SNOWFALL WAS OBSERVED IN DC ON THE 15TH. THE LAST TIME SNOW WAS OBSERVED IN DC IN APRIL WAS IN 2007 WHEN A TRACE FELL ON THE 6TH AND 0.4 INCHES FELL ON THE 7TH. THE LAST TIME SNOW WAS OBSERVED IN DC ON OR AFTER APRIL 15TH WAS IN 2001 WHEN A TRACE OF SNOW FELL ON THE 18TH. " - [ + + ] - from NWS Sterling, VA

Chantilly - from Russ Topping: " April showers? This April we saw the highest April rainfall ever on the 30th (3.79”), with a two-day storm total of 4.89”. Record rainfall also fell on the 29th (1.10”). April precipitation of 7.19” was extreme (+3.72”), but short of the all-time record at this site. The mean monthly temperature was 54.8° (+0.4°). The mean high temperature was 66.6° (-0.1°) and the mean low temperature was 43.1° (+1.0°). A record high minimum temperature was set on the 14th (64.5°). *Please note, anemometer is currently partially obstructed from the North and East " - [ + + ]

Dulles - from NWS Sterling (KLWX): " TEMPERATURES AT DULLES AIRPORT THIS APRIL AVERAGED BELOW NORMAL. IT WAS THE COLDEST APRIL SINCE 2007. APRIL 2014 WAS THE WETTEST APRIL ON RECORD AT DULLES...BREAKING THE PREVIOUS APRIL MONTHLY RAINFALL RECORD OF 7.35 INCHES SET IN 1973. A RECORD DAILY HIGH MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF 63 DEGF WAS SET ON THE 14TH...BREAKING THE OLD RECORD OF 58 DEGF IN 1972. A RECORD DAILY MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF 30 DEGF WAS SET FOUR DAYS LATER ON THE 18TH...BREAKING THE OLD RECORD OF 31 IN 1996. TWO DAILY MAXIMUM RAINFALL RECORDS WERE SET AT DULLES THIS MONTH... THE FIRST DAILY RAINFALL RECORD OF 1.19 INCHES WAS SET ON THE 29TH...BREAKING THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 1.04 IN 1990. THE SECOND DAILY RAINFALL RECORD OF 3.99 INCHES WAS SET ON THE 30TH...BREAKING THE OLD RECORD OF 0.72 INCHES SET IN 1973. THE RAINFALL ON THE 30TH ALSO RANKS AS THE WETTEST DAY IN APRIL... SURPASSING THE PREVIOUS WETTEST APRIL DAY BY OVER AN INCH (PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 2.90 INCHES IN 20 APRIL 2008). IT WAS ALSO THE WETTEST DAY AT DULLES SINCE 29 OCTOBER 2012 DURING HURRICANE SANDY...AND THE 10TH WETTEST DAY OF ANY MONTH ON RECORD. A RECORD DAILY MAXIMUM SNOWFALL OF A TRACE WAS SET ON THE 15TH. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME SNOWFALL WAS OBSERVED AT DULLES IN APRIL SINCE 2007 WHEN A TRACE FELL ON THE 5TH AND 6TH AND 0.2 INCHES FELL ON THE 7TH. THE LAST TIME SNOW WAS OBSERVED ON OR AFTER APRIL 15 AT DULLES WAS IN 1993 WHEN A TRACE OF SNOW FELL ON THE 22ND. " - [ - + ]

Herndon - from member Randy Ashby: " April was below normal for temperature and well above normal for precipitation. The temperatures ranged between a high of 83 and a low of 30 and the temperature average was 2.3 degrees below normal. On the precipitation side, the month was 3.94” above normal; with 7.59” measured. This is the most I have ever recorded in April at this site. We had precipitation on 11 days during the month, including almost 1.5” on the 15th and 5.21” during the last 3 days of April, through midnight on the 30th. We had a trace of snow on the 15th and ended the season with 48.6” of snow, the 4th most for this site. We are now over 6” above normal for precipitation for the year. " - [ - + ]

Norfolk - from NWS Wakefield AKQ: " ...Near normal temperatures and above normal precipitation characterized Norfolk weather in April ... The average temperature at Norfolk International Airport was 58.0 degrees, which was 0.2 degrees below normal. The a verage high temperature was 67.0 or 0.6 degrees below normal. The average low temperature was 49.0 degrees or 0.1 degrees above normal . The highest temperature was 85 degrees on the 4th. The lowest temperature was 37 degrees on the 16th . There were 0 days with minimum temperatures below 32 deg rees, which is 0.1 days below normal. Precipitation came in at 4.87 inches, which is 1.46 inches above normal. The greatest 24-hour total was 2.33 inches from the 15th to the 16th . There were 9 days with measurable rainfall, which is 1.1 days below normal. No snowfall fell in April, which i1s normal. There were 286.5 accumulated growing degree days (GDD), which was 13.5 GDD above the 1981 - 2010 normal of 273 GDD. The highest was on the 14th , at 22 GDD. For 2014, precipitation has reached 14.98 inches, which is 1.37 inches above normal. The average temperature year-to-date is 45.7 degrees, which is 2.0 degrees below normal. There were no daily records set at the Norfolk International Airport in April. " - [ - + ]

Norfolk - from NWS Wakefield AKQ: " ...ONE OF THE COLDEST PERIODS ON RECORD AT NORFOLK FOR LATE APRIL... DURING THE FIVE-DAY PERIOD ENDING YESTERDAY APRIL 20TH...NORFOLK VA REMAINED BELOW 57 DEGREES. THE FOUR DAYS ENDING ON APRIL 19TH SAW TEMPERATURES GET NO HIGHER THAN 52 DEGREES. BOTH OF THESE WERE THE COLDEST FOUR AND FIVE-DAY PERIODS ON RECORD FOR THE SECOND HALF OF APRIL. THE AVERAGE HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR APRIL 16 TO 20 WAS 51.4 DEGREES... aTHE COLDEST FIVE-DAY PERIOD OF HIGH TEMPERATURES ON RECORD FOR THE LATTER HALF OF THE MONTH. THE PREVIOUS RECORD WAS FROM APRIL 17 TO 21 IN 1875 WHEN THE HIGH TEMPERATURES AVERAGED 51.8 DEGREES. SINCE 1900...THE PREVIOUS COLDEST FOR THIS PART OF APRIL WAS IN 1983 WHEN READINGS AVERAGED 54.2 DEGREES FROM THE 17TH TO THE 21ST. DUE TO THE INFLUENCE OF RELATIVELY COLD WATER IN THE NEARBY OCEAN AND BAY DURING THE SPRING...IT IS FAIRLY COMMON TO SEE HIGH TEMPERATURES IN THE 40S AND 50S FOR SHORT PERIODS OF TIME DURING APRIL. IT IS UNUSUAL FOR SUCH TEMPERATURES TO LAST MORE THAN 3 DAYS IN A ROW. NORFOLK AVERAGES 8 DAYS WITH HIGH TEMPERATURES BELOW 60 IN APRIL WITH ONE OF THOSE DAYS IN THE 40S. " - [ - + ]

Portsmouth - from Bill Trotter: " APRIL 2014 WAS THE 5TH WETTEST APRIL MONTH IN THE DATABASE TO 1977: The top 5 wettest Aprils include: 1) 7.08" 1991 2) 6.96" 2003 3) 6.51" 1984 4) 6.38" 1979 5) 6.02" 2014 April's average temperature of 59.0° was 0.4° BELOW NORMAL. Precipitation (6.02") was ABOVE NORMAL by 2.57" or 174% of the April average during the period from 1976 to 2013. Rainfall for the year through April 30th was 17.40" (+3.16" or 122% of normal). To view the station monthly and year-to-date climatological summary (LCD) for this Portsmouth station, please click here. Frontal passages were noted on the 1st, 4th (WARMFROPA), 5th, 7th (WARMFROPA), 8th, 15th, 23rd, 26th, 27th STATION RECORDS: 4th - TEMPERATURE Maximum 86° [previous 85° 1999], 15th - RAINFALL 2.15" [previous 1.55" 1989], 16th - TEMPERATURE Minimum High 47° [previous 55° in 2005], 25th - RAINFALL 1.05" [previous 0.71" 2001], 28th - RAINFALL 1.21" [previous 1.05" 1980], 28th - TEMPERATURE TIED Minimum High 58° [previous 1999]. - [ - + ]

Glen Allen - from Lowell Koontz: " April was slightly cooler than average by -1.8°F. The monthly mean temperature for April was 57.5°F the second lowest for April. April was much wetter than average with a total of 6.84 inches, a departure of +4.10 inches based on the average of the past 5 years and was the wettest April on record. It was also the most for any month since July 2013 when 7.03 inches was recorded. The maximum rainfall recorded in a day this month was 1.76 inches on the 30th and was a record amount for any April day. This was also the most precipitation in a day since July 3, 2013 when 2.42 inches were recorded. Also 2.50 inches were recorded in a 24-hour period, which was a new record for April. Measurable precipitation occurred on only 8 days but four days had greater than one inch which ties the record set in December of 2009. The high temperature for April was only 83°F on the 13th, which was a new record for the lowest maximum temperature for the month of April; previous record was 88°F in 2011 & 2012. April also had only three 80-degree days; the previous 5-year record was 7 in 2012. The lowest minimum was 30°F recorded on the 17th (the second lowest for April) giving a hard freeze and a heavy killing frost. There were a total of 5 days with frost that tied the record set in 2012. The highest daily mean temperature of 70.5 °F occurred on the 13th breaking the record low maximum by -5.5 degrees for April. The average ground temperature of 55.4°F at one-foot depth was also the lowest on record for April and with the late frost delayed spring plantings. The maximum wind gust was 38 mph from the SSW that occurred on the 15th at 1252. The highest barometer for the month was 30.62 inches on the 17th that was the maximum pressure recorded for April and occurred with the killing frost and lowest temperature of the month. " - [ - + ]

Richmond - from contributor Lowell Koontz (GAV): " The Richmond International Airport had one record tied for the date on April 30th for the highest minimum temperature of 63°F that also occurred in 1915 and 1991. The lowest minimum temperature at the Airport was 33 °F on the 16th and 17th. The highest temperature in April was 85°F occurring on the 4th, that tied for the lowest since 2003. The lowest temperature in 117 years is 80°F in 2000. The Richmond International Airport’s April mean temperature was 59.1 °F which was a departure of +0.9 °F and was the 31st warmest April since 1897. Their precipitation total was 4.05 inches which was a departure of +0.78 inches. Only 30 Aprils in the past 127 years have been wetter. It is interesting that the airport had 2.33 inches less precipitation than Glen Allen during the last 3 days of the month. The airport also reported only 7 days with measurable precipitation; only 13 years have had fewer days with measurable precipitation in April. - [ + + ]

Richmond - from NWS Wakefield AKQ: " ...Near normal temperatures and above normal precipitation characterized Richmond weather in April ... The average temperature at Richmond International Airport was 59.1 degrees, which was 0.9 degrees above normal. The average high temperature was 71.4 or 1.1 degrees above normal. The average low temperature was 46.9 degrees or 0.8 degrees above normal . The highest temperature was 85 degrees on the 4th . The lowest temperature was 33 degrees on the 16 th and 17 th . There were 0 days with minimum temperatures below 32 degrees, which is 1.3 days below normal. Precipitation came in at 4.05 inches, which is 0.78 inches above normal. The greatest 24-hour total was 1.45 inches on the 25 th . There were 7 days with measurable rainfall, which is 3.0 days below normal. No snowfall fell in April, which is 0.1 inches below normal. There were 346 accumulated growing degree days (GDD), which was 41.5 GDD above the 1981 - 2010 normal of 304.5 GDD. The highest was on the 14th , at 21 .5 GDD. For 2014, precipitation has reached 13.60 inches, which is 0.4 9 inches above normal. The average temperature year - to - date is 44.4 degrees, which is 2 . degrees below normal. There were no daily records set at the Richmond International Airport in April. - [ + + ]

North Carolina:

Greensboro - from NWS Raleigh (RAH): " A RECORD RAINFALL OF 1.64 INCHES WAS SET AT PIEDMONT TRIAD INTL AIRPORT NC ON APRIL 7TH. THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF 1.55 INCHES SET IN 1907. " - [ - + ]

Raleigh - from contributor Bob Woodson (RAL): " WHILE THE AVERAGE DAILY TEMPERATURE WAS SLIGHTLY BELOW NORMAL (-0.3 DEGREES), RAINFALL WAS 2.21” ABOVE NORMAL. YEAR TO DATE PRECIPITATION IS NOW 2.99” ABOVE NORMAL. THUNDERSTORMS WERE OBSERVED ON FOUR DAYS DURING APRIL. TORNADO WATCHES WERE ISSUED ON THE 25TH, 29TH AND A TORNADO WARNING ON THE 30TH. THERE WERE SEVERAL CONFIRMED TORNADOES IN EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA. " - [ - + ]