April ranked 2nd coldest in Illinois history

Clouds
Illinois’s average temperature in April was 44.7 degrees, the coldest since 1907. (Photo courtesy Pixabay)

By RFD Radio/WFMB Radio

SPRINGFIELD – How cold was it? April was a record setter as May now rolls in with temps in the 80s.

It was the second coldest April on record with an average of 44.7 degrees, State Climatologist Jim Angel said the cold set in because of a northerly storm track that allowed Canadian air to slide south.

“The only April that beat it was 43.1 degrees set back in April of 1907, so you have to go way back to see something as cold as this,” Angel said. “It was very cold, not only in Illinois but pretty much across the Midwest was cold this April.”

May has opened warmer than normal. Most of the state is basking in temperatures 10 to 15 degrees above average.

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