MAHONING VALLEY Think this summer was a hot one? It was -- the hottest since 1995

The summer's average temperature was 3.5 degrees higher than normal.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Until this year, the Mahoning Valley experienced relatively mild summers for the past 10 years.
The average temperature for this past June, July and August was 71.6 degrees, or 3.5 degrees higher than the typical Valley summer, according to statistics compiled by the National Weather Service at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport in Vienna. The NWS considers those three months to be "summer" when compiling records.
It was the warmest June, July and August on record since 1995, when the average temperature was 73 degrees.
The NWS has records of the warmest summers in Cleveland and the Akron-Canton area, but doesn't keep records of the warmest summers in the Mahoning Valley, said Mark Adams, a meteorologist with the agency in Cleveland.
But based on the records the service has available, 1949 was the hottest summer for the Valley with a 73.1-degree average; 1995 was a close second.
"This year would be up there in the top 10 if we had one," Adams said.
Month by month
Last month's 71.6-degree average tied for the eighth warmest August in the Valley's recorded weather history, which dates to 1943. This past June, with an average temperature of 70.5 degrees, is the second warmest June in the Valley's recorded weather history.
The average temperature of 72.6 degrees in July was half a degree away from making the top 10 for that month.
There were 12 days in June, July and August 2005 that reached at least 90 degrees, with July 26 being the hottest day at 93 degrees.
"If we went back and forth between cool and warm summers the heat this summer wouldn't have been as noticeable," Adams said.
For example, the average temperature for June, July and August 2004 was 66.5 degrees.
Air from the SouthAlthough there is no definitive reason for the hot summer, Adams said jet streams of warmer air from the South stayed in this area longer than usual. The NWS had not predicted this summer would be warmer than average, he said.
"There is a lot of uncertainty in long-range forecasts," Adams said.
With that in mind, the forecast for September is for it to be typical for that month. The average temperature for September in the Valley is 61.5 degrees.
It didn't rain much in June, July and August. The total amount of rain for the three months was 9.82 inches with 2.42 inches of it falling Aug. 30. The average rainfall for this area during those three months is 11.44 inches.
skolnick@vindy.com