April in Illinois was Warm and Wet

[May 08, 2014]  CHAMPAIGN - The statewide average temperature for April was 51.9 degrees, only 0.7 degrees below average. While it continues the string of below-average months that stretched all the way back to November, this month had the smallest departure from average, according to Jim Angel, Illinois State Climatologist at the Illinois State Water Survey, University of Illinois.

The year-to-date statewide temperature was 31.2 degrees, which is 6.6 degrees below average, making it the fourth coldest January-April on record.

The statewide average precipitation for April in Illinois was 5.11 inches, 1.33 inches above the 1971-2010 average. This is the wettest month for Illinois since June 2013. Harrisburg reported a monthly total of 12.96 inches, the highest monthly total in the state.

Snowfall was light in April and confined to the northeast quadrant of the state. Amounts of 1 to 2 inches were common in the Chicago area.

While southern Illinois received the most rain, some parts of north-central Illinois were slightly below average. At this time, the U.S. Drought Monitor shows Illinois to be drought-free with only a small amount of “abnormally dry” conditions near the Quad Cities area.

[Text received; Illinois State Water Survey, Prairie Research Institute]